The Sun Chronicles: The Speed of Darkness
by Cudabear
Summary: (AU - Book 1) Skipper's got secrets; a past he only wanted to hide. When Manfredi one day returns, everything Skipper had hoped for gets shattered. His team is launched headfirst into his past, battling for a power strong enough to conquer the world. Struggling to both keep Manfredi sane and evade the pursuit of Alice, Skipper works to finish what he started nearly two years ago.
1. Prologue

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**The Speed of Darkness  
**A Penguins of Madagascar Fanfiction Novel

Cudabear  
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**Disclaimer: **I own nothing of this story, except for my own renditions of Manfredi, minimal OC's, other characters and Skipper's past. I don't own any character names or the title.**  
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**Chapter 1 - Prologue**

He was hungry. Not in the way that a homeless man hungers for any morsel of food. Not in the way that a schoolgirl hungers for the bland food on her tray, complete with a half pint of chocolate milk. The business man who stops into a McDonald's drive-thru, too busy to take the time to sit down for his meal isn't hungry in the same way he was. No; these people hungered for food, for something to fill their growling stomachs and fill them with nourishment. That was definitely not what he was hungry for.

This hunger was deep inside him, gnawing at his inner conscious and making him want to cry out in pain and rage. He futilely searched for something to satisfy the deep void inside of him. Nothing seemed to help: material possessions, relationships, his old life. He obtained each in succession and gave them up again when they left him dissatisfied and empty. The hunger was unsatisfiable. He felt as though it was slowly breaking down his sanity and the hallucinations that plagued him throughout the night made him worry about his future.

The hunger mixed with the fear—a deadly combination. He feared for what would happen to him. He had lost everything; his sanity was all that he had left. If that was slowly leaving him, he didn't know what would happen to him. It made his stomach turn late at night as he tried to hold down his dinner. He would lay on the floor, doubled over, wanting to pain to stop. He begged God, he begged his late mother and father, he begged Johnson, he begged his lover, he even begged his own organs that the pain would cease. It never did, though; the void inside him acting like a vacuum collapsing his body in upon itself.

The figure would come to him then, stand over him and laugh at his weakness. "You're dirt," it would say to him, "Just like Johnson."

How could it say that? Johnson had been just as much of a brother to the figure as Johnson had been to him. He looked up into the figure's blue eyes. Blank and without a trace of life. Those weren't the eyes he remembered. The eyes he knew were vibrant, eager and full of courage and warmth. The eyes he gazed into now were dark and cold.

Tears would begin streaking down the feathered side of the hungry one's face. On the opposite side, they left a visible trail of rust down the hard metal plating that covered the once lush, shiny feathers on his cheek. Even he had forgotten what he looked like before. He had lost all his pictures, and anyone who could describe it to him was gone. He was a monster to himself now, and if anyone saw him they would agree. Half machine, half bird. Who would care? Sarah would, his Sarah, the one who was carrying an egg, his egg, his son or daughter. But she was gone. Just like Johnson, murdered by the apparition standing over him now.

He would lash out at the figure in grief, but the figure was always too fast for him. The apparition dodged to the left, it dodged to the right. He swung with all of his strength, but all he contacted with was air and he felt the tendons tear in his flipper. He would fall then, clutching his wounded arm and curling up into the fetal position.

"You're trash," the figure would insult, "you and Johnson both."

"He was your brother too," He would respond, heart racing from his battle with the air.

"Johnson was only a hindrance to the plan. So were you, but I allowed you to live, didn't I?" the apparition would return.

The words would cut deep into him and made him bleed tears. He would feel the pain as each syllable sliced through his flesh and made feelings of hurt and betrayal bubble to the surface. These feelings would mix together and anger would result. Not the anger that a siblings feel towards each other when the other is being selfish or what a teenager feels when he gets grounded for slacking off. Those are short lived and always overcome by the much greater feelings of love and forgiveness. This anger he felt came from deeper within him then that. He felt no love, no forgiveness, to ward off the anger. The tears would dry and the pain would disappear. He would begin to quiver and then convulse, but not from sobbing.

He would then rise, the anger filling him with newfound confidence and his beak would be twisted into a wide grin. A knife would appear in his hand, then a dagger, then a sword. He would slash and stab at the apparition until it was nothing but an unrecognizable pile of blood and flesh and feathers. He would watch the apparition come back together, the act of the blade undone. He would grasp the stock of the pistol in his hand, the butt of the rifle, the trigger of the sub-automatic machine gun. He would press the barrel into the side of the figure's head, licking the sides of his beak as he heard the pointless pleas. He would depress the trigger, sending lead into the apparition's head again and again.

He would laugh then. A deep and dark laugh full of hatred. He would laugh and laugh until his jaw hurt. He laughed as he swung the machete, he laughed as the blood pool mixed with his tears on the floor. He laughed out of joy, accomplishment, and insanity. He laughed for Johnson, he laughed for Sarah, he laughed for his unborn child.

That is what satisfied his hunger. Revenge. Killing the one who took away everything he ever had to live for. The black and white body laying below him, crystal blue eyes open and full of fear, was the one who took it all. That was his target. Now he had taken it's life, and he felt no regret. It was the one thing that satisfied his hunger, filled the void within him. The pain was gone and he no longer prayed for it to stop. He walked away from the black and white figure, slung a backpack that was on the ground near him over his back and walked out of the crawl space.

As he walked, the rifle, the sword, the pistol disappeared from his hand and the bloodstains disappeared from his feathers. The body faded into nothingness in the crawlspace and the dust returned as if there had been no struggle at all. All that remained were the pools of tears and the box of a stolen fillet-o-fish.

His target was near. He could sense it; he was sure of it. He waddled into the empty, dimly lit train station, no activity other than an empty subway train parked in the tunnel. He proceeded onto it and crammed himself into a storage compartment beneath a seat. He found a crumpled up map and opened it up, recognizing one phrase and one phrase only: _Central Park Zoo_.

He was close, and his beak curled into a smile as he twirled his imaginary katana in his hands. It wouldn't be long now.


	2. May the Fifteenth

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 2 - May the Fifteenth**

Skipper's log. 700 hours on May the fifteenth.

Well I finally managed to graduate from boot camp. I know, great, right? I got shipped off to Denmark before I could even choose if I wanted to go or not. Captain stuck me in this dump of an outpost on the very outskirts of Ringsted, a tiny town in the middle of nowhere.

The trip here was unpleasant. Getting stuffed into a crate no bigger than a suitcase with a couple other nervous and sweaty privates for seventeen hours was nowhere near first class. I couldn't even get out for some fresh air and to explore the plane; the crate could only be opened from the outside. They didn't want us getting into trouble at sixteen thousand feet, I suppose.

On the upside, the two other penguins I met got shoved into the same room as I did, so we had lots of time to introduce ourselves on the way here. The first one is named Johnson. He's short, very short, and also seems very young. Probably younger than I am, judging by the fact that he hasn't got all his feathers in yet. He acts young too, and seems naïve about what war is really all about. I wonder if he lied about his age to get into this program, because he talks as if he were still a small boy. 'I'm going to shoot me some hostiles' he said to me. 'And be the hero, so everyone will look up to me.' He seems focused on that goal, and I hope that I won't have to be the one to break it to him that war isn't all what it is cracked up to be.

He didn't talk much about his home life. I'm not one to open up my person life either, but he changed the subject on almost every question asked about his background. Apparently he was raised in captivity in much the same way I was, in a Seaworld in Dallas, Texas. He said only a little about his Mother and Father, but I think that the humans separate the chicks from the parents at that place, so he probably never even met them.

Manfredi, the other penguin I was stuffed up with, is a lot different than Johnson. He seems very old, and talks with a slow drawl similar to what my grandfather used to tell me stories with. Even though, judging by his looks, I still think I'm the oldest one here. Manfredi had a bigger grasp on reality than Johnson, and kept telling him that if he keeps believing what he does, he will be dead in no time. I have to admit it made me laugh, because I was about to tell him the same thing. Manfredi has got his head screwed on straight, I have to admit that much.

He's about the same height as me, but he's more intimidating that I am because his massive build. He took up most of the room in the crate, and he was very picky about us not touching him. I have to say I have never seen a penguin as burly as him, and when I asked him about it he just told me that 'he works out.' He was also was easily angered on the trip over here, but he seemed to calm down when we got settled in our room in this Godforsaken outpost. I'm not sure if he had a fear of flying or something, but by the looks of it it seems likely.

He talked a lot about his personal life. I could probably write a seven-hundred page biography about him right now. He said a lot about his fiancé, Sarah. I guess he was already missing her, which I don't necessarily blame him for. I have never been in a relationship, so I have no idea what that would be like. More on topic, Manfredi was born in raised in the open area of Antarctica. He told Johnson and I horror stories about his uncle Fredrick was eaten by a lion seal. Johnson claimed he deserved it for being named Fredrick, in a joking way, but Manfreeti doesn't seem to take fondly to jokes. Johnson was quiet for most of the rest of the trip after Manfredi called him a series of explicatives, but I don't really blame him. I'd never want to get on a penguin like Manfredi's bad side.


	3. Of Penguins and Fish

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 3 - Of Penguins and Fish**

Skipper sat on top of the artificial ice floe and gazed into the morning sunrise. The sun had just broken over the horizon, visible only through the sparse gaps in between the towering skyscrapers that were like giants looking down on the city of New York. The sun illuminated only one side of each building with a gray but warm light. The other side remained in shadow and Skipper could see the lights of offices.

He smiled, holding up his coffee mug and taking a long drink of the warm liquid. He then took the fishtail he used to flavor the drink and swirled it around, eyes locked onto the sun. The morning sunlight reflected off his blue eyes, causing them to shimmer. They were a crystal blue, and the faint morning light caused them to glow with unusual brilliance. The the corners of the penguin's short but wide beak perked up into a slight smile as the sun warmed his chilled feathers. The feathers on his back were a dark, charcoal black but he also possessed snow white feathers on his chest and face.

Skipper quite often enjoyed to awake early, earlier than his team, and get a nice glimpse of the sunrise before the chaos of the city took over. Soon enough, sounds of sirens would be echoing up the street and into the zoo. The sounds of cars speeding away and the chatter of people walking from place to place would fill the air. His crazy neighbor Julien would be breaking into the headquarters in only a few hours. Then the zoo would fill up with guests and the penguins would be acting 'cute and cuddly.' That was life for him, and he enjoyed it. But nothing beat this: A quiet morning and a warm cup of joe.

Skipper drained the last of his coffee and happily munched on the fishtail. Then he stood, noticing that it was nearing time for his team to engage on their morning training routine. Skipper was not a big penguin, but was certainly not a small one. He stood straight and proud, carrying an air of confidence and leadership as he walked. He had, long, sleek flippers and a flattened head.

The penguin reached over his head to stretch out his back and looked at his surroundings. The zoo was small; a place of recreation in a bustling concrete jungle. It was shoved into one corner of Central Park, one of the only places left in New York to get away from the stress of everyday life. All of the exhibits were closely grouped together and winding paths that guests crowded onto divided them. No animal in the zoo had enough space for themselves; some barely had enough room to even turn around. The zoo was a pinnacle of organization, no better zoo could be built using the same amount of space.

Skipper recognized several exhibits: the otter exhibit which housed his friend Marlene, who was sometimes annoying but not anywhere as annoying as Julien who resided with Mort and Maurice in the lemur habitat. Skipper shook his head at the visible lemur king sprawled out in his throne, fast asleep. He noted several other exhibits: Joey the kangaroo, Doris the dolphin, Bada and Bing the gorillas. He recalled on the adventures his team had had in each exhibit, some going better than others.

The penguin habitat itself was not a prize in the zoo. It was simply a small ring of water with a fake ice floe in the middle made of concrete. There was nothing to make the habitat look like Antarctica, or anywhere penguins may be found for that matter, as it was just a flat slab of artificial rock. All that existed on top of it was a bowl for holding fish that concealed the hatch entrance to the penguin headquarters. This headquarters had been the base of operations for Skipper and his team for more than a year now, and although it wasn't special, it was home.

Skipper walked over to the food bowl, opened it and slid down the ladder into the darkness of the HQ. He glanced around and saw the television, the chess board, the refrigerator. All things that they had stolen from the humans and smuggled into the headquarters was neatly organized around the concrete home.

The leader penguin looked over to his teammates asleep in their bunks. Skipper's bunk, the top one, was empty and the blanket was already neatly folded on top of the pillow. He glanced down and looked at his teammates one by one in their peaceful slumbers, another smile pulling at the sides of his beak.

"On your feet, soldiers," commanded Skipper. His voice was deep and soft, yet still held a feeling of authority anytime he spoke.

Upon hearing their leader's voice, the three penguins still in their bunks hopped out and saluted Skipper. They lined up uniformly, just the way they had been practicing for months. Their blankets and pillows landed neatly on their bunks behind them.

"Reporting for duty, Skippah," responded Private, the shortest of the penguins standing in the room. He spoke with a British accent, signifying his European past. He was the shortest of the four, being only slightly shorter than Skipper. He was more rounded than the leader penguin as well. Skipper knew him to the the youngest, newest, and most inexperienced member of the team. The leader penguin had given his younger comrade the duty of specialist, and he handled anything that the other three were unable to do. Skipper nodded to him and looked at the penguin standing next to him.

"Affirmative," Kowalski stated, "I am also." He was the tallest, taller than Skipper by a considerable amount. His body was long and slender, allowing him to glide through the water as if it were air. Kowalski spoke with an air of intelligence, and it was clearly noticeable in his word choice. He was highly intelligent and was not only Skipper's strategist, but first lieutenant and best friend. He was usually seen planning out strategies and options on his clipboard, which he would then list to Skipper in a methodical manner. Skipper offered him the same nod as the previous penguin and looked to the last penguin in line.

"_Awake!_" wheezed Rico. Ever since Skipper first met Rico, he had known of the heavyset penguin's speech impediment. Even though, Rico was not one to be underestimated. He possessed great strength and the brains to know how to use it. Rico was just a little taller than Skipper, but he was not as tall as the strategist next to him. He was the heaviest penguin, but he was most certainly not fat. His face was wide and usually expressed either happiness or confusion. The top of his head was garnished with a small mohawk of feathers.

The strange thing about Rico was his extraordinary ability to swollow anything and regurgitate it later when it was needed. Skipper took advantage of Rico's unique ability by having him hold on to the team's weapons, mainly explosives. Over time Rico became skilled with the explosives and Skipper desided to designate him expert in the field.

Skipper nodded to Rico as well.

"Excellent job," remarked the leader penguin, "That was considerably faster than yesterday. Kawasaki, what's on the agenda for training this morning?"

Kowalski walked over to his trademark clipboard, picked it up, flipped through a few pages and then spoke. "We're practicing our dropkicks and roundhouses, Skipper. Followed by some scheduled maintenance on the HQ."

"Alright, sounds good to me." said Skipper.

"Roundhouse?" inquired Private. "You mean like that move the Julien intimidation robot used on you when we tried to teach it?"

Skipper sighed. "Yes, Private. That day made me realize that we're not as good of fighter's as I thought. So I scheduled some basic combat training to practice some key moves." Private nodded in understanding.

"_Fiiish_!" Rico grunted, pushing over a bowl full of mackerel and tuna. He sat down next to it when he got closer to the others and happily began stuffing his face. Skipper, who had not had breakfast yet, helped to himself to a particularly big fish.

"Skipper, when do you think our fish supply will run out?" Kowalski asked his superior after they had finished eating. Private and Rico were already up on top of the bunker setting up the ninja bowling pins to act as targets for the penguins. "We don't have much left."

Skipper knew this dilemma was bound to come soon. They had always intercepted a delivery truck that goes from the docks to some place he didn't know, but for some reason the trucks had stop coming. They had waited for hours at intersections but the trucks just wouldn't come. The team later went several miles away from the zoo, using the sewers to transport themselves, and took fish directly from the fishing barges that came in to the docks. Those barges didn't last long though, and soon the team couldn't find any fish at all. They had much packed away into reserve, but even now that was waining.

"I don't know, but we're going to have to find another source soon unless we want to eat those fishcakes the zoo keeps giving us. Got any ideas?" said Skipper.

"Well since all fishing operations have ceased down at the docks, I really don't know where to start looking for some more." Kowalski stated, glumly.

"Well where do the people get their fish, if they don't get it from the ocean?" asked Skipper.

"Maybe they could obtain some through an exchange at some sort of open market?"

Skipper rubbed the bottom of his beak thoughtfully. "We're going on a mission tonight."

"What do you mean?"

"We're going to find where the place where the humans get their fish, and take some for ourselves."

Kowalski nodded in understanding. If they didn't act soon, they would be forced to consume the inedible fishcakes that the zoo was trying to force upon them. He picked up his clipboard and jotted some things down before looking back up at Skipper.

"What are you thinking?" Skipper asked him. "Got some options?"

"Remember when we ordered Chinese last week?" Kowalski responded.

"Yeah, but we do that every week. Or at least when there's enough money in the reflecting pool."

"Well, Mason told us the wrong number from the phone book again, remember?"

Skipper recalled how Phil the chimpanzee was the only animal who could read well, or understand complicated human talk for that matter. The only problem was that Phil was mute, and spoke with sign language. Mason was another chimpanzee who interpreted the complicated hand gestures and translated them to speech for the rest of the animals to hear. They made a great team, although they made many mistakes in their translation and it usually took more than one try before both Phil and Mason got it right.

"Yeah, when the humans answered they said 'You've reached Marthe's Hometown Food Mart.' or something." answered the leader penguin.

"According to my calculations, fish and food are one in the same," Kowalski said simply, "So if we find this food mart we should be able to find the fish. After all, a mart is a place of exchange."

Skipper clapped his tall friend on the back. "You're a genius."

"Thanks, Skipper. The only question is, where do we go?"


	4. Captivity

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 4 - Captivity**

Marlene groggily opened her eyes and peered into the morning sun. The entrance to her cavelike home was positioned just right so that the sun fell onto her face every morning and awoke her. She kicked off the blanket she had been curled up with, then sat up and rubbed her eyes. It was oddly quiet this morning, and the eerie silence was worse then the yellow noise of the city.

Marlene was a normal sized otter, with a slender, curved body designed to cut through the water at high speeds. She had small ears and a pointed tail. Her fur ranged from light brown to dark brown and she had a tuft of white fur on her chest and chin. The fur itself was smooth and sleek, and it seemed to gleam in the morning light.

The otter glanced around her home, which was a decent sized area dug out of artificial rock which could only be accessed from a drainage pipe that lead to the outside world. She had done much to decorate: there were flowers in a vase on a stone slab that she used for a table, small pieces of art she had collected hung on the walls and she used fabrics to add color to the drab rock. She was satisfied with her home, although she knew it was nothing special.

She made her way out of the cave, stretching her arms and back as she went. The morning sun illuminated the zoo in a beautiful way, and the peacefulness of the moment was a rare commodity. The otter climbed up her artificial rock structure to the very top, where she had better vantage at the rest of the exhibits. There was nothing going on, all the animals were still asleep, even Julien. She noticed the penguins training on their bowling pins, but she had gotten used to the sight since she moved in over six months ago.

The view from the top of her small mountain was one that accomplished artists seek for years to create the perfect painting. The faint, gray morning light, the animals in their habitats, and the architecture in the background would have made for a painting that would go down in history. Any person standing up there would have remarked at the beauty. The flowers growing along paths, the fountain near the zoo entrance. It was a rare spot, but Marlene sighed and turned around.

She was never one for beauty. "Dear, aren't these beautiful?" her mother would say to her, holding up a random handful of flowers when she was only a child. She would glance off to the side and say simply, "Maybe for eating."

That was what she got for growing up with only male siblings. Her mother had always tried to get some 'girl time' with her, but she always said she would rather play with her brothers. That was a long time ago, and she had nearly forgotten what her mother looked like.

As she gazed out, her vision reaching just over the wall and down a city street, she thought about her habitat. The tall, brick walls that encompassed the area, making it difficult for even the guests to view her over. She would often see young children sitting on their fathers' shoulders, crying, "I want to see the otter!"

The brick was designed by the zoo management to keep her locked inside of her cage, but she had scaled it numerous times using her claws to get hand and footholds. She hated how the zookeepers intended her to stay in her tiny habitat all day and swim laps around the same pool that never changed.

She saw the groups of humans walking up and down the street she was gazing at, wondering where they go, what they do. She wondered why they got to explore and go where ever they chose to go, but she had to stay in her habitat with the tall brick walls. She wanted to be like the people she stared at; she wanted to go explore the world.

She wanted to escape the tall, brick walls that she gazed at for hours each day. Skipper and his team were leaving the zoo all the time and going on adventures. She wanted to go with him, to go on an adventure and experience the thrill and the adrenaline coursing through her veins.

But she had only left the zoo once. It was on a mission with the penguin Skipper, and she remembered walking outside of the zoo gates, at first nervous, but then her confidence grew. She had wondered through the park, breaking away from Skipper, his team, and Julien and explored. She felt so free, unchained, and like she had the ability to do anything. It was shortly after that she didn't remember anything and the next thing she could recall, Skipper was telling her she'd gone crazy and had fallen in love with Julien.

She shook her head at the memory. Skipper would never let her go with him after that little stunt. Other then that one time, Marlene hadn't been outside of captivity since she had been a small otter. She had faint memories of her mother and father, her brothers. Then she remembered clearly the cage that took them all away, placing them in their first zoo. They stayed together in that zoo until one by one, as they came of age, the otter pups were shipped off to other zoos. When her time came, it was the last time she had seen her family.

And she wound up here, trapped in captivity and longing to get out. She missed her parents, her siblings. She knew they were long gone now, though, spread out all over the country. She had let them go a long time ago, knowing that if they were reunited and separated again, she would be even more crushed than she was when it happened the first time. She knew they were out there, having a good time in a zoo much like hers in a cage with tall brick walls just like hers. She wondered if her brothers were looking down a city street like she was now, wondering what she was doing. She laughed, shaking her head at the memories.

"Good morning, neighbor!" called a familiar voice from behind her. She spun back around and her eyes fell on the lemur king now perched on the top of the brick wall.

Julien was a tall, straggly looking lemur that Marlene thought had always grown too fast for his frame. He had light fur that ranged from white to gray, with pointy ears and a bushy, striped tail. His head was adorned with a crown made of palm leaves, stones, and other trinkets.

"Good morning, Julien," Marlene responded. "Hey weren't you just sleeping a few minutes ago?"

"No I was just pretending to be sleeping. I was actually watching you the whole time," said Julien. "I noticed how you look longingly into the city. Why is this?"

Julien usually had nothing good to say. He usually talked about himself, his feet, his problems, his moods. He was a selfish and stuck up lemur, who never admitted something was his fault. He had his moments though, as the look of concern on his face now showed. The question had caught Marlene off guard, and she took a few moments to compose herself.

"I want to go explore out there," she said finally, gesturing to the street she had been looking at. "to go find some adventure and excitement. You know?"

"That's not a good idea, unless you want to be falling in love with me again," Julien said, laughing at his own joke. Marlene didn't think it so funny and rolled her eyes.

"I don't know what happened to me that day. I felt so free and in control, like the whole world was at my fingertips."

"It is okay," Julien assured. "We all have our crazy moments. Even Maurice went crazy before. But not me, because I am king, and going crazy is not a kingly thing to be doing."

Marlene rolled her eyes, this time at the lemur king's lie. He too had gone crazy after eating the same lychee nuts that Maurice had eaten. Typical Julien, she thought, won't admit a single thing.

"Yeah," Marlene said, choosing not to start an argument over something so silly, "Why do you care, anyway?"

"You, silly otter, are my friend." Julien replied simply and quickly. Julien never looked out for his 'friends', but he had his moments.

"Do you think I'll ever get out of this place?" Marlene asked the tall lemur.

"Why to be asking me such silly questions? Do I look like I am a future reader?"

Marlene frowned. His random spree of concern was over. She turned back to the city. Julien shrugged, knowing he was dismissed.


	5. The Wrong Target

**AN/ Skipper's logs will now be put as preliminaries to existing chapters. I realised if I made them into thier own chapters, my story would have a lot of short chapters that would break up the storyline. \AN**

Skippers log. 1800 hours on May the twenty third.

_We've settled into our new home here on this military base. After all, its been over a week since we arrived here. Processes go down here not much unlike how they did at boot camp. At six hundred hours sharp we wake up, and go for role call. We eat slop for breakfast. The officers claim that it's fish, but it tastes more like cardboard. Eight hundred hours is morning training and exercises. At twelve hundred we start our duties._

_Manfredi and I got assigned to construction, and unfortunately its not very exciting business. We're putting up a new bunker on the northern front, and it's long, hard work. We have to heave heavy bags of concrete, mix it, and pour it to the exact specifications of our superiors._

_Johnson said he had been working in the kitchen, which made Manfredi and I laugh. They only assigned the weakest to do tedious jobs such as that. I feel bad for the little guy though, he barely knows what the word 'military' really means._

_After that, we get a little bit of time to ourselves before it's lights out at twenty one hours on the dot. It's an exhausting routine, and I'm sore. I thought the physical training I had encountered in boot camp was enough, but apparently the long hours of manual labor are past my level of endurance._

_Manfredi has spent most of his free time putting hundreds of pictures of his home up on the walls round his bunk. 'This is my girl,' he said to us on more than one occasion. He talks a lot of how he's expecting a son or daughter by the time he gets home. It makes me wonder why I haven't been able to settle down and start a family yet. After all, he's younger than me._

_Johnson writes in his journal, which he guards closely and threatens to snap off our flippers if we try to get too close to it. I know if Manfredi and I really wanted to get a peek, we could easily overpower Johnson, but I know to respect his privacy. After all, I'm not really sure if I would be able to read very much of his writing anyway. He must have had some sort of formal education, which is rare among penguins. If my suspicions are true, however, he'll make a great addition to the team._

_I'm beginning to wonder when we'll see any action. After all, we're in the middle of nowhere, who would want to attack us? I've heard stories from the old penguins back home about how they sat at their bases and did nothing but manual labor for years before they were finally deployed to battle. I wonder if that'll be true for us, but I certainly hope not. I don't want to spend years working just like I could at home. I don't want to shoved up into this little room with barely enough space for the three of us while I wait for something to attack._

_The funny thing is I don't really know who it is we're fighting. We're stationed here, and we don't even know who to attack if we see them. I've questioned my superiors a few times on the subject, but they don't seem to know either. I just saw the recruiting poster and signed up, not even thinking about what this war was for, about, or if it even existed. Judging from Manfreeti and Johnson's backgrounds, the Penguin Army recruited far and wide, but for what? I hadn't heard of any fighting going on anywhere in the world._

_I spent six months in boot camp, and I'm not going home before I see some action._

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 5 - The Wrong Target**

He found himself walking down a deserted alley in the middle of a city he didn't know. His surroundings looked dark, damp, and hopeless. The sun didn't seem to reach this narrow spot between the buildings, and it left the whole place feeling very odd and unusual to him.

He didn't know exactly where he was going, but he knew that if he kept walking, his feet would eventually bring him to his destination. His target. He twirled the revolver around on his flipper, whistling a happy tune.

This alleyway would have given even the most hardened soldier a feeling of fright and make them wish they weren't there. It was the sort of narrow passage that unspeakable crimes had occurred in, ones that nobody ever knew happened. Faces come and gone, lives had been ended here. Innocence had been taken here. The entire place smelled of the vile hoodlums that had come here to hide out from the police. It was enough to make anyone want to run and never look back at that wretched place, wishing they had never stumbled into it from curiosity.

He continued walking. As he waddled further into the unknown of the alley, he could feel his fear levels rising. His heart quickened slightly. He was trying to tell himself that he should turn back, run, and find a different route. But he wouldn't listen to himself. He liked it here. He liked how it smelled of decaying garbage. He liked watching the small rodents scatter as they heard his feet make contact with the cold pavement.

He looked at the graffiti as he walked. It lined every brick wall and the side of every dumpster he passed. He looked at the piles of forgotten garbage that was due to be picked up years ago. He liked how this place was important at one point, but now forgotten. It was important to the shopkeepers who used to own stores and restaurants on either side of it, then it was important to the criminals that used it for an escape route. It was even important to the homeless men who found refuge in it. Now it was forgotten, just like he was. He was important at one point, just like the alleyway. Everyone knew his name, everyone knew where to go where they needed help. Everyone knew to come to this alleyway, everyone knew to come to him. He felt like him and the passageway were one in the same. Forgotten by the ones that had held them dearly.

But Sara would never have forgotten him... If she were still alive...

He stopped whistling his happy tune. He clenched the handle of his revolver tightly and pulled the trigger, sending a bullet ricocheting around the alleyway. It left by passing through a glass window without breaking it. Sara would have never forgotten him...

"Hey, what are yous doin'? Havin' a fist clenching contest?" a voice said from above him, breaking him from his thought.

He looked up and saw a pigeon perched on the lowest level of a fire escape. He noticed the gray feathers, the colorless eyes, the small beak. The pigeon was a small bird, not even half of the penguin's size.

"Look buddy, I heard yous whistlin', and I gotta say, you ain't no song bird," The pigeon mocked, laughing at his own words. The penguin on the ground glared up at it. What gave him the right to insult him like that?

"What is a penguin doin' back here anyways?" the pigeon asked him. "A penguin in a really ugly costume."

The pigeon had a smirk on his face. A smirk that tore deep into the penguin worse than the words. The smirk reminded him of when the apparition had smiled evilly upon him.

"Yo, buddy, you there?" said the Pigeon, it's head now cocked to the side with curiosity. "Yous lost?"

The penguin clenched his beak tightly, and twisted his flippers into tight balls. He couldn't help the rage building up inside him at the bird perched above him. The pigeon thought that he was better then him. His target thought that he was better than him. His target thought he could get away with betrayal and murder. This bird thought he could get away with his hurtful words.

"Here yous go with the fist clenchin' again. What yous got planned?"

_"You were just in the way of the plan. You and Johnson both."_

"Buddy," the perched bird called down to the penguin. "You lost?"

He looked back up at the bird. Gray feathers were now distinguishably black and white. The colorless eyes were now blue. It's small beak had become wide and flat. Its new size made it look like it could barely balance on the beam it was perched on.

"You!" He called up to the pigeon. "You did this to me!"

He pointed with his flipper to the metallic flipper that hung at his side. The reflective material continued up over most of the right side of his torso and onto the right side of his face, encompassing his right eye. It was a mysterious material that reflected the face of whomever gazed into it back at them.

"I didn't put yous in no ugly Halloween costume," answered the bird. "Yous must have lost a pretty big bet to be wearing that, though."

Everything word the pigeon said was like daggers that burned into his flesh. He wanted it to stop, wanted it to go away. He grabbed a rock that was nearby on the ground and picked it up in his metal flipper, squeezing it until it crumbled in his hand.

"Yous are the weirdest penguin I have ever met," said the pigeon. "Or are yous a robot?"

That was too far. He looked up once more, now looking directly into the eyes of his target. The penguin he was looking at was smiling widely and looked confident in what he said.

_"Look at you, you should be dead, but instead you decided to cheat death and become a robot, didn't you?"_

"You did this to me!" he screamed. The pigeon shivered at the sudden outburst, but stayed anyway.

"I didn't do anything to nobody," it responded, plainly.

_"I should have made sure you were dead from the start,"_

He snatched up another rock and gripped it tightly. Without warning, he pulled his arm back and threw it with all of his might at the penguin perched on the fire escape. There was a sound of fluttering wings, but the rock contacted with his target's head and it plummeted to the ground, hitting hard.

He walked over to his target, smiling. There was a little bit of blood leaking from its head, and its eyes looked blanked. He liked when they were blank, just like Johnson's had been when he had discovered his body that long time ago.

He continued to stare at the eyes when suddenly they began to change. They were no longer blue, but a deep green. He watched the whole penguin's body transform and now he was looking at the curved body of a female penguin. He recognized it as Sarah, and fell to his knees and began weeping over the dead body.

"I'm so sorry I didn't get there in time..." he said. "I failed you and our child."

Suddenly the body changed again. He was now looking at a penguin chick, looking like it had just hatched from an egg. It was his son. His unborn son, dead on the ground, killed by him. He choked suddenly, gasping for breath before emptying his stomach onto the ground.

He was a monster. A murderer.

"Ernie? Ernie!" a female pigeon cried from above. "What have you done to Ernie?"

The penguin opened his eyes and looked at the pigeon's lifeless body on the ground. He had ended the innocent bird's life, thinking he was his target. He was a murderer. A creeping feeling grew in his chest and he found it hard to breathe again. He clutched it before glancing around madly and sprinting off, away from the horrible alleyway.

"Oh, Ernie!" said the female Pigeon. She landed next to her husband's dead body and began to sob.


	6. Operation Evasive Bass

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 6 - Operation Evasive Bass**

"So where are we going, Phil?" Skipper asked a chimpanzee who's face was glued to the screen of an office computer. It turned around and began signing out to another, darker furred, chimp, Mason. He nodded with understanding before turning to Skipper and speaking.

"Marthe's Food Mart is a few blocks northeast of the dock you used to get fish from before," he said with a thick English accent. "It's a small place tucked behind a big office building."

Phil pulled up a picture of the front of the building on Google Maps, and Skipper acknowledged the store. The team and him had seen it before when following delivery trucks through the city streets, and he had a fairly good idea of where to go.

"Mammal, print us a copy of that picture," ordered Skipper, "Private, get us some wheels."

"Aye, Aye, Skippah," agreed Private before sliding on his belly across the floor and out of the office. A plaque on the door read _Alice Smith-Head Zookeeper_.

"Thanks for your help," Skipper said to the two chimpanzees who assisted him in using the computer.

"No problem, Skipper," responded Mason, nodding. Phil closed down the Internet browser he was using and they left the room to return to their habitat.

"Rico, weapons check," Skipper said, now looking at his explosives expert.

The heavyset penguin quickly responded by coughing up several weapons, including a blowtorch, a flamethrower, a pair of sharp knives, and a short baseball bat. "_Check!_" the penguin shouted happily before swallowing the weapons once again.

"Operation Evasive Bass is a-go!" announced the leader penguin happily.

He hopped down from the desk onto the floor and the three of them left the office building and walked into the evening air. The zoo had been closed for a few hours now, and all the zookeepers had gone home. The sun was setting in the west in an explosion of orange and red. Most of the animals had settled down for the night, but Skipper and his team had work to do on this particular evening.

"Our transportation is operational, Skippah!" said a beaming Private, who was standing next to a sewer entrance.

Skipper praised his specialist and the four proceeded down into the dank atmosphere of the sewer. It was not Skipper's favorite place, but it was the quickest way to move around the city without drawing attention from the humans. Skipper had learned through his years to avoid the people whenever they could. It would draw unnecessary attention to his team; blow their cover. The zoo was an exception though. People would expect to see the penguins in their exhibit at the zoo, but not waddling down Main street at near dusk.

Upon entering the sewer Skipper saw a zoo golf cart, engine still running, parked only a few feet from him. The penguins often used the golf carts to get around the city quickly, or to keep up with delivery trucks from beneath the pavement. It took two of them to drive it to drive it, or one with long, wooden two-by-fours to press the pedals with. The penguins had driven this particular cart into the sewer though a large service entrance ages ago, and after discovering how to refill the gas tank, it had suited their purposes ever since.

Rico took position at the vehicle's pedals, as he usually did. Skipper took a hold of the wheel and Private and Kowalski took a seat next to him. In no time they were off, speeding down a raised, concrete walkway that enclosed the slow flowing river of filthy water.

"Brake. Gas. Brake." Skipper ordered as they sped around hairpin turns at breakneck speed. They made great speed through the city down here, probably even better than the cars on the street above them, trapped in the evening rush.

It was only a short time before they reached the end of a particularly long tunnel, the end of the line. It was at the water treatment plant, and as the water flew over a waterfall into a huge reservoir, Skipper called for Rico to hit the breaks and the cart screeched to a stop. All four penguins assembled and climbed up a long ladder before emerging just outside of a huge filtration system. Skipper could see the docks where they had looted fish in the past, and noticed how they were empty now. At any time of the day, they used to be bustling with fisherman going from boat to boat. Now, nothing. He turned to his team.

"According to this map," Kowalski said, looking at the piece of paper that Phil had printed for them. "The food mart is four city blocks north, and two blocks east from where we stand now, Skipper."

"Wonderful," responded the leader penguin, "Team, move out!"

They proceeded then, using their highly trained senses of awareness to avoid being spotted by any of the humans roaming the streets or driving in their cars. They hid behind a mailbox, and upon Skipper's signal they moved quickly and tucked themselves in the shadow of a dumpster. They moved swiftly, going in and out of alleyways and finding the most concealed route. Skipper didn't like moving around above ground so much because of the risk of compromise, but they didn't know exactly where they were going. After they located the store they would be able to find a pathway in the sewer that resulted in a closer drop off.

After several minutes of traveling, the penguins reached their destination. Skipper saw the front of the building on the other side of an alleyway. Marthe's food mart was a small, rundown building tucked between two office buildings. It looked as though it had been their longer than any of the other buildings surrounding it, and that was probably true. There was a window with ads posted in it, and a sign above the door that read in big, bold red letters: _Marthe's food mart – serving southwest Manhattan since 1933!_

Skipper motioned for his team to continue down the alleyway, and they proceeded slowly. This particular alleyway sent shivers up and down the leader penguin's spine just by the fact that it was so deserted. They sounds of the city seemed to fade away and it grew very quiet.

"Skippah, look!" Private said, pointing to a dumpster not far from where they stood.

Skipper didn't see anything at first, but then he saw two birds one sprawled out on the ground and the other laying on top of it, visibly crying. The crying bird, a small and colorless with a short beak, heard Private's words and looked up at the penguins standing not far from it. It shot up, a look of terror on its face. It dragged the bird on the ground, which Skipper noticed was either sleeping or unconscious, until it's back hit a wall.

"Stay back!" it screamed, voice quavering. The voice was noticeably female.

"Kowalski, analysis." Skipper whispered to his first mate.

"It appears to be two pigeons, sir."

"Go away! Go away!"

The pigeon took up random pieces of trash up in its wing and whipped them at the penguins, but they were badly aimed and fell short. Rico coughed up a wooden sword and threatened to strike back, which made the pigeon flinch. Skipper held up a flipper, and the weapons expert lowered the sword.

"We don't want to hurt you," Private said first, "What's wrong?"

The pigeon across from them calmed down a bit. Skipper noted how Private had always been the best negotiator out of all of them, always knowing what to say and when it needed to be said.

"P-penguin," she choked, "Like you, except, except he was like a robot. He k-killed my Ernie!"

Skipper arched a brow at the small bird's words. He was sure that they were the only penguins on this side of Long Island, and grew curious as to what the pigeon was talking about. Had a penguin escaped from another zoo and went on a killing rampage?

"What happened?" Private spoke when nobody else did.

"I-I don't know. I came here looking for Ernie and I saw him on the ground, and there was a Penguin kneeling over him. I think he was crying." confessed the pigeon. "When I got close, he looked at me and then ran off."

"What do you mean he was 'like a robot'?" questioned Skipper.

"One of his wings, I mean flippers, was made of metal, I think. Part of his face and chest was metal as well. He kind of looked like he was in a costume." The pigeon answered, not crying any more but still holding the dead Ernie's wing in her own. Skipper rubbed his beak at the discription.

"Was Ernie close to you?" Private asked.

"He was my husband. We have three chicks at the nest who won't ever get to know their father." the bird said, voice beginning to sound shaky once more.

"I'm so sorry," Private responded. Skipper couldn't help but feel sorry for the bird as well. He, too, had suffered the loss of someone dear to him...

"I wish there was something we could do for her," Kowalski said to himself. Skipper looked up at his strategist.

"We're soldiers, not homicide detectives," he said after a pause. Kowalski nodded in agreement, though he still looked sad.

Skipper turned back to the pigeon. "Well we'll, uh, keep an eye out for the penguin you described."

"Thank you," she responded simply.

Feeling that was enough of a dismissal, Skipper gestured for his team to move out and they did, more quickly this time. Skipper pictured the penguin the female pigeon described in his head. He pictured a bulky bird with a metal helmet on. No, the pigeon had said that 'part of its face was metal', not that it was wearing a helmet. Skipper pictured half of the penguin's face covered in metal, surrounding its right eye. He saw, in his mind, a robotic flipper. Suddenly he froze, overwhelmed with a feeling of nostalgia.

"Skipper, are you alright?" said Kowalski, concerned. Rico cocked his head at his leader.

He hadn't seen a robotic penguin anywhere before in his life. How would that be even possible? But he couldn't help but feel the very strange feelings that were overwhelming him right now. Could it be? No, he was long gone, and why would he be a robot?

Skipper replaced a missing calm and collected look upon his face before speaking. "I'm fine," he said simply. Now was not the time to think, they were in the middle of a mission. And he certainly didn't want to get his team all out of shape by telling them his thoughts. He shrugged, then motioned for his team to continue.

When they were out of the dank atmosphere of the alleyway, Skipper proceeded to get his team's minds off of the whole event. They crossed the street when nobody was looking and went up to the front door of the grocery store.

Peering in through the window, he noticed that the store was empty. Probably closed down for the night, thought Skipper. There were several shelves lined up into neat isles with boxes and cans organized on top of them.

"There's no access point from this side, Skipper." observed Kowalski. He stood in front of the large, sliding doors that were locked shut. Rico pushed with all of his might but there it didn't budge.

"Perhaps you should try pulling, Rico?" Suggested Private. Rico nodded and pulled, but it didn't do any more than before. He wheezed before giving up and kicking the door.

"We need to find a way inside," Skipper said. "An open window, a back door, a hatch on the roof."

His eyes followed their way up tall drainage pipe on the side of the building, one that they could climb to get to the roof. He wasn't sure if there was an opening up there, but his team had found access points on the roofs of structures time and time again. He walked over to the pipe and grabbed it with his flipper. There were bolts in the side of the building that could be used as footholds and the pipe itself wasn't slick or hard to hold onto.

"Skipper you're not suggesting..." began Kowalski.

"I want you all on top of this building ASAP," he answered, "go, go, go!"


	7. The Unknown

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 7 - The Unknown**

Marlene sighed.

Once again, Skipper and the team were out on some exciting mission somewhere. Once again, she was locked inside the zoo. Once again, she sat on the edge of her small pool and twirled her foot in it, watching the ripples that it made in the pristine water.

Skipper had walked close to Marlene's habitat earlier in the day.

_"Hi, Skipper!" She called to him from her perch on top of the tall, brick wall. He looked up to her from the pathway. _

_"Hey, Marlene," he responded in his usual matter-of-fact tone of voice._

_"Where are you headed to?" She said, wondering why Skipper was roaming the zoo by himself after it was closed. Usually he stuck with his team never really went on missions this late in the day._

_Skipper looked uneasy, "Highly classified, Marlene."_

_Marlene rolled her eyes, "You're going on some top secret mission to some super secret hideout in the super secret country of Czechoslovakia, aren't you?"_

_"What? No, we're going on a sort of scouting mission. A little bit of reconnaissance if you know what I mean."_

_"Ooh, sounds exciting. Can I come?" She recalled all the times she had asked him that question in the past._

_"Uh, Marlene," he began, sounding serious, "We're going outside of the zoo." _

_"Oh," the otter responded simply, crestfallen and knowing exactly why Skipper was so skeptical about letting her outside of the gates again._

_"Besides, having you along would compromise the entire operation. We're a highly trained combat fighting force and operate with the highest efficiency possible. Having a tag along would be like..." _

_"I know, I know," interrupted Marlene. She really didn't want to hear Skipper ramble on and on about his team and his military operations right now. For some reason, she couldn't find the courage to ask him for a second chance._

Marlene sighed again and turned her head to look into the setting sun. It cast long, dark shadows across her habitat but also illuminated it with a bright glow.

She got up from her spot in front of the pool and then went to climb her artificial rock formation that apparently was supposed to be some sort of 'otter slide'. She had slid down it several times when she first arrived at Central Park, but now she only used it to get a vantage point. It was the second highest point in the whole zoo, the only higher point being King Julien's mountain where his throne resided. As for the fact that it was supposed to be a slide, the penguins probably got more use out of it than she did.

Skipper hadn't come back yet. The only exciting things ever happened when he, Kowalski, Private, and Rico were up to something. She wished that he would come back so that she could go over to the penguin headquarters. Skipper would vent his frustration at her for always bursting into a 'highly classified military establishment'. He would shake his fist, raise his voice, and stomp on the ground a little until he finally agreed to let her stay. They would play chess, watch a movie on the penguins' TV or have some sort of an adventure.

The otter sat down and pulled her knees into her chest. One day, she would get out of her prison. One day she would convince Skipper that she could leave the zoo without loosing her mind. One day she would convince _herself_ that she could. One day she was going to have an adventure.

She got up and hopped back down the concrete formation. She had waited for Skipper long enough; he wasn't going to get back anytime soon. She walked around to the opening of her cavelike home before turning to take in a deep inhale of fresh air.

Suddenly she heard what sounded like rock grinding on rock. It was faint, but just loud enough to be heard by her heightened sense of hearing. She perked up her ears and stood as still as possible to determine where the sound was coming from. It slowly grew louder until she realized it was echoing at her from all directions. It was emitting from her den, and she suddenly felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She took a few steps into the opening, but the difference in light and angle of the sun made it hard to see anything inside.

She had grown used to weird sounds resounding around her room before. After all, she had one of the few entrances to the sewer in the floor of her small space, and strange sounds were always coming from there. Sometimes it was Rodger the sewer alligator, other times it was just rats scurrying or water flowing.

The sound continued to grow louder, then suddenly stopped. She held her breath and listened intently for the slightest hint that it still existed, whatever it was. She winced and gritted her teeth as she heard the grinding of metal across concrete. Something had just opened the sewer grate cover, sliding it across the floor of her den. She couldn't see into her home yet; her eyes hadn't adjusted enough yet. She only saw a large, dark figure pull itself out of the manhole. Her eyes grew wide and her mouth fell open.

It grunted as it pulled itself over the edge. It was a deep grunt that resounded around her cave. Was it Skipper? No, what would he be doing in the sewer beneath her house? He also wouldn't be struggling to pull himself up when he was usually seen doing impressive acrobatic back flips in the air and his team would be right behind him. What if something happened to his team? Her heart quickened as her brain raced through all of her thoughts. The figure stood to its full hight. What if Skipper got into a fight with the Rat King? What if the figure was the Rat King, come back to start some more trouble in the zoo? The shadow moved and she saw a faint glint of light.

The thoughts buzzing around her head and the fear she was experiencing were too much for the otter, and she let out a loud scream. The shadow jumped at the sudden noise and looked directly at Marlene. She suddenly felt stupid; whatever it was, it now knew that she was there. It took a few slow steps forward. Marlene took a few steps backward. She wanted to turn and run, but her muscles were locked up and all she could do was inch away.

"Stay back!" she said, trying to put as much authority in her voice as possible but she knew that it cracked. The approaching threat stopped before tilting its head curiously at Marlene. She tightened her paws into tight fists as her mind buzzed as what the strange being was about to do next.

"Where is Skipper?" it spoke, a dry and raspy voice. It sounded tired.

"I don't know," responded Marlene, unsure of what else to say.

"Where is Skipper?" it asked again. It's voice was calm and without emotion.

"Why do you care?" she returned. She tried to take another step back but her foot splashed into her pool and she nearly fell of balance, but caught herself.

The figure didn't respond, but simply took a few more steps forward and continued to gaze at her.

"You're an otter," it said finally.

"Yes, I am. What are you doing in my habitat?" Marlene decided to ask.

"Looking for Skipper. Why else would I be here?" Finally she was getting somewhere.

Marlene's eyes were starting to adjust to the differences in light. She could make out a face, white and black feathers, and an orange beak. She was looking at a penguin for sure, a masculine one at that, and for a moment thought she was looking at Skipper until she convinced herself otherwise.

"Where is he?" he asked.

"I don't know," Marlene stalled. She wasn't sure if she should run, stay, fight, or try to find out more about this penguin's purpose. She wouldn't give it the information it requested though, knowing that Skipper wouldn't give out his own credentials so easily.

"You are friends with him, yes?"

"Wait, how did you know?" said Marlene quickly before realizing how stupid she was to say that.

"I've been watching this zoo for a while. You're quite close to the penguin Skipper, arn't you, little otter?"

Marlene blinked.

"There's you. There's that tall lemur, Julio or something. He's got two pals that follow him all over the place, doesn't he? There's those too chimps Skipper uses to translate common writing into speech. One's deaf, I know that. There's that soft crocodile that lives in the sewers beneath us."

"Who are you?" Marlene said, stunned at this penguin. She had never met him before, but he spoke as though he had been living in the zoo for a long time now.

"That's not important," he responded simply. "Now tell me where Skipper is. I know that you know, and I _will _force it out of you."

The ghostly penguin took another few steps forward, and Marlene audibly gulped.

"Stay back!" she said. "I'm warning you, I know taekwondo!"

"Oh do you?" answered the approaching penguin. He was now completely illuminated by the failing evening light, and Marlene got a better look at him. He had blue eyes, or rather one eye, as the other was completely white, showing that he was blind in that eye. His feathers looked ruffled and dirty and a patch of them was missing on his right shoulder. He had a few feathers sticking up on the top of his head, much in the same way that Rico had. His whole complexion looked shockingly similar to Skipper's, except for the minute details.

"Yes I do," assured Marlene.

"I think you don't."

Marlene tried her best to take a convincing fighting pose. The penguin stopped and tilted its head at her.

"Cute," he said plainly.

Marlene knew that she was expressing fear through her movements and facial expressions, but she didn't know to stop herself from doing so. The penguin took another few steps forward, leaving him only feet from Marlene.

"I'll ask you one more time," he said, "Where is Skipper?"

"He's not here... he's out on confidential business," returned the otter.

Suddenly, the penguin lunged forward and grabbed Marlene's arm tightly. She jerked to get away but was too slow, and the penguin held her in his grip.

"Listen to me, otter. I have a highly trained force of over one hundred men who are just outside the city. On my word, they will storm this place and burn it to the ground. All I need is a little bit of information and your precious zoo will be fine."

"H-he's..." Marlene stuttered.

"_Ayyeeeeiiii_!" came a cry from Marlene's side. In a blur, the penguin was tackled to the ground and released Marlene's arm. Marlene recognized the white and gray fur, and the palm leaf crown laying on the ground not far away instantly.

"If you are having a problem with de king, you should be talking to de king!" cried Julien through grunts.

He held down the penguin who struggled to get up. Eventually, he freed one of his flippers, balled it into a fist, and slammed Julien across the snout. Julien rolled off of the penguin, clutching his nose and crying in pain. Marlene was frozen as the penguin picked himself up and kicked a whimpering Julien in the side.

"Oh my nose," he said, "my kingly nose!"

"King Julien!" came a deeper voice from the same direction as the lemur king had emerged. Marlene looked and saw Maurice, a wide and stubby lemur, bounding towards his fallen king, closely followed by Mort the mouse lemur.

"I'll be back," said the penguin simply, knowing he wouldn't be able to hold off any more animals if they came. "And next time, I'll bring some backup."

Marlene just stood there, mouth agape as Maurice chased the penguin into her home. He charged, but was too slow as the penguin climbed back into the sewer entrance and repositioned the grate on top.

"Yeah, you better run!" called Maurice, shaking his fist in the air. Seeing the threat was gone, he returned outside of Marlene's home.

"Are you alright, King Julien?" came Mort's high pitched whine. Julien stood, holding his side and mumbling something about his nose.

"Marlene, what was that all about?" asked Maurice. "We heard you scream and came here as fast as we could. Who was that penguin?"

"I don't know. He just waltzed in here and started asking for Skipper. When I didn't answer him, he threatened to attack the zoo with an army."

Maurice looked confused. "I wonder why he was asking for Skipper?"

"Me too," responded Marlene.

"Oh, my kingly nose is ruined!" Julien had moved his hands and was looking down at his snout. It looked fine, except for a little trickle of blood coming out of his left nostril.

"Thanks for scaring him away, guys." Marlene said.

"We need to tell Skipper about this when he gets back." Maurice affirmed. "He'll know what to do."

Marlene looked into her home and at the sewer grate. "Can I stay with you guys tonight?"


	8. Tuna

Skipper's log. 1900 hours on June the fifth.

_"Well, all of the construction work has been finished. Apparently there wasn't much to do besides put up that bunker. The whole place is a fortress and doesn't need much work, so all of us on construction duty have been put on fishing duty. The entire number of soldiers that have moved to fishing in the last week has been unbelievably high, and even Johnson was moved. He was glad to be out of the kitchen, I bet._

_"We start fishing tomorrow. It doesn't look like it's going to be any more exciting than pouring concrete on the northern front, but at least it won't be as hard of work. I haven't been fishing in a year myself, so I'm kind of looking forward to it. Also, we get to go some ways out of this quiet little town to the oceanfront. Maybe we'll encounter something dangerous on the way?_

_"I'm just not sure on why the base suddenly needs such a huge amount of fish. Nearly half of the soldiers here have been switched over, according to Manfredi, and thats several hundred Penguins. We'll be bringing in hundreds of pounds of fish within a few days. Why would we be stockpiling so much food?_

_"I questioned my superiors on this a few hours ago, and they told me that it was simply in case we were cut off from the ocean or put into a situation where our allies couldn't send us any more supplies. I asked my Staff Sergeant whether or not there was a threat of being such a predicament, and he simply told me, _'There's always a threat, soldier.'

_"Other than that, there's been no word as to who or what we're fighting against. Morale is down around here, and rumors are spreading that we're only being used for manual labor. Some penguins even think that they're just going to sell the fish that we collect. Johnson is still confident that we'll see action soon, but Manfredi doesn't think anything is going to happen at all. He mumbles about how stupid he felt for joining this force quite often now. I just hope he doesn't decide to ditch it all and go AWOL. The last thing I want to do is have to track down my new friend just to kill him on the firing line."_

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 8 - Tuna**

Skipper grunted as he hoisted himself up over the tall edge of the top of the convenience store. The climb was hard, but with aching flippers he had made it to the top. Kowalski closely followed him, and the leader penguin offered him a hand and pulled him over the edge as well. Next came Rico, tongue hanging out the side of his mouth. Private grunted with exertion but eventually he too made it safely up the drainage pipe.

"Now what?" Private asked after he caught his breath. Skipper looked around him. Nothing special: a puddle of water, a small air conditioning unit softly humming in one corner, a lot of gravel, random pieces of trash blown up there by the wind.

"Skipper, I don't think there's an access point up here," observed Kowalski, eyes looking for anything. A trapdoor, a ventilation shaft, a drain.

"We don't know that for sure," Skipper said, hoping the trip up here was not in vain.

"_Yack, Yack!" _blabbered Rico, who had wondered away. He stood next to the air conditioning unit and was waving his flippers. Skipper and the others proceeded to where he stood.

"Wonderful work, Rico!" he said, looking at the small hatch that Rico had just opened. It was rusty and didn't look like it had been used in ages, but was still a way inside.

Skipper peered down into the dark room. It looked like a decent fifteen or twenty foot drop to the ground, so jumping in would not be a good idea. He turned at the sound of Rico coughing and found his explosives expert holding a very slimy rope in his flippers. Skipper nodded, slapped his partner on the back, and took the rope from his hands. He then lowered it into the food mart, secured it onto the latch of the trapdoor, and in a blink all four penguins were standing on the linoleum floor of Marthe's Food Mart.

"Alright, we're in," said Skipper happily, "Now lets get us some fish."

"Aye, Aye, Skippah!" acknowledged Private. Skipper looked up and down the aisle he was standing in. There were cans with pictures of food on them, boxes full of words he didn't recognize and jars full of human food he didn't know. Not a single fish was to be found, though. None of the pictures on the cans looked like fish, either.

"Spread out team," he ordered, "and look for anything that might be fish."

His teammates nodded in approval and they each took different aisles, looking at the different items on the shelves in curiosity. Skipper took up a box of cereal in his flippers. It had a picture of fish on it! He pried it open quickly, tearing at the cardboard and plastic. He then held in his flippers a soft, powdery fish-shaped thing. He put it in his mouth, chewed on it a little bit before spitting it out.

"Yuck! I hate marshmallow,"

"Skipper, Rico, Private, I think I found something." came Kowalski's voice from the aisle next to Skipper. He slid on his belly over to his teammate, who held a small, cylindrical can in his hands.

"Look," he started, "This can has the word _tuna _on it."

Skipper looked at the word Kowalski pointed out. He couldn't recognize it, and had never been able to read before. Kowalski was unable to read very much either, but could recognize key words and symbols, which he used to plan things out on his clipboard. Skipper knew that not knowing how humans communicated through words or writing was a weakness for his team, but he had never taken to the time to try to learn.

"Tuna is a type of fish. Lets open it!" Private said excitedly, clapping his flippers together. Rico regurgitated a bat and aimed it at the can after Kowalski set it on the ground.

Several minutes of senseless pounding later, the casing finally cracked and an unfamiliar substance splattered all over the floor. Kowalski waddled over to it and tasted it.

"This is definitely tuna, Skipper." he said, nodding. "Well it's been pulverized already, but it tastes just like tuna."

"Alright," Skipper said, "Rico, swallow as many of those cans as you can."

Rico complied, swallowing several of the tuna cans and belching loudly.

"Alright team, move out." commanded the leader penguin.

The four proceeded and walked to the spot where they had left the rope hanging. Expecting to see it still dangling from the trapdoor above them, he waddled happily. Surprisingly, it lay on the ground now. Private walked up to it and picked it up.

"How're we going to get out now?" he asked. Skipper grabbed the rope and glanced between it and the hatch above them. There was no way to climb up to it, none of the shelves around them went high enough and there was nothing they could use to form a makeshift ladder. Skipper tied the rope into a form of a lasso and attempted to throw it up and hook it on a long, florescent light. However, the penguin lacked the strength to toss the rope high enough and it barely made it halfway.

"Didn't I tell one of you to secure this rope?" said Skipper, frustrated. His team looked at him confused.

"Skipper, you were the one who tied it off," Kowalski responded. Skipper thought he had tied it tight enough and it was still hanging when they had split up, and he wondered why it would be on the ground now. Someone must have untied it.

"On your guard men," Skipper said, "We might have company."

Rico, Private, and Kowalski glanced around them. It suddenly grew very quiet as they listened intently for any sound of a threat.

"Skippah, I don't think there's..." began Private. Skipper put a flipper on his beak to shush him. He barely heard something fall in the isle next to them.

"We've definitely got company," Kowalski said, tensing up.

"We find a way out of here," cried Skipper. He didn't want to get cornered in a dark place.

Skipper darted, instinctively heading for the windows at the front of the store. He hopped on top of a register and looked out of the window. There were no visible openings, and he was sure the door was still locked. The only thing he could think of was to smash one of the windows and leave through the opening.

"Rico, break one of the windows so we can get out of here!" Skipper ordered. Rico complied and began hacking up something to break the window with, but oddly enough he only hacked up a can of tuna. He hopped up onto a counter in front of the window and began beating on the glass with the can until it became dented, but he managed to crack the glass. He continued hitting it.

Skipper's eyes scanned the area. There were a lot of shadows that anything could be hiding in. A streetlight outside cast a light into the store that left most of it in darkness. Skipper tensed up.

"Hurry, get us out of here!" he cried. Rico swung with particular force and he finally broke a small piece of the window out. Unfortunately, he set off a pressure sensor near the bottom of the frame and a loud alarm began sounding.

A_ loud alarm began sounding. Skipper looked frantically around him for his teammates; there were nowhere to be found. He was alone right now, but he knew within moments that one hundred armed penguin soldiers would be upon him. He needed to move quickly. _

_He took the item from its holster, clutching the glass canister. Within seconds he heard the heavy machinery behind him grind to a halt and the lights went out around him, bathing the chamber in darkness. An emergency, battery operated light turned on near one of the exits and he ran towards it, nearly tripping over a thick power cable._

"Skipper, we've got to get out of here," Kowalski's voice awoke him. "The humans are coming!"

"What? Oh, right."

The two moved off of the register and out of the hole in the window where a confident Rico and a nervous Private were waiting for them. Reassembled, they moved out. Using the cover of night, they moved even more quickly through the streets then they had before. Skipper made sure to avoid the alleyway they had passed through on their way here, and they swiftly made it back towards the water treatment plant as police sirens whizzed by.

Back at Marthe's Food Mart, a rat sat on the roof happily gnawing on the stub of the end of the rope that was still tied to the handle of the trapdoor. Another rat moved between boxes on a shelf and hopped off it, sniffing the tuna that was smeared on the floor.


	9. Developments

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 9 - Developments**

Skipper hopped up into the hole in the wall just outside the zoo gates, and after letting Rico, Kowalski, and Private enter he slammed the sign that concealed it shut. All of the penguins were breathing heavily from fleeing the food mart. They stepped out of the little tunnel through the arch and into the zoo.

The sun had gone down and the zoo was illuminated only by the lights of the city. Lights could be seen shining down from the highest offices in the skyscrapers around Central Park. The zoo itself had been closed for several hours, and none of the lights were on except for a sole lamppost every few hundred feet. All of the zookeepers had gone home, and only a lonesome few security guards patrolled the paved pathways.

"Well, that could have gone better," said Private, chuckling.

Skipper couldn't help but smirk. "Mission accomplished, men. We successfully infiltrated the market and made off with some fish."

Skipper high-fived Kowalski, Private jumped up and down gleefully and Rico grunted with happiness as he played with one of the cans of tuna. Skipper smiled. He had come to the zoo hoping for an escape from his military past, but Rico, Kowalski, and Private were always so eager and determined to get the job done. They followed orders and solved problems with pinpoint accuracy and worked together to satisfy their needs as a team.

"Skipper! There you are!" called a deep voice, making the leader penguin jump. He peered to his left to see the wide lemur Maurice walking towards them.

"What's going on?" Skipper asked.

"I was wondering when you were finally going to come back. King Julien and the others are waiting for in the Zoovenir."

"Why would Julien want to see me?"

"There's been a break in, Skipper." explained Maurice, looking solemn.

Skipper suddenly grew very serious. "Let's go."

The penguins knew the Zoovenir shop well. It was the zoo's only gift shop, located near the entrance. The animals of the zoo had been using it for meetings for as long as Skipper could remember. The building was small, tucked into a corner as if it had not been part of the zoo's original design. Pictures of animals hung on the exterior walls and several pieces of merchandise were visible through a display window. A large, colorful sign hung over the door. Maurice opened it and the penguins entered.

"...This guy is obviously not to be messed with," said Marlene as they walked into the main area. She was sitting on a barrel full of stuffed Private the penguin dolls and had her arms crossed.

"I saw it with my own eyes. He gave me the chillies," responded Julien, seeming to agree. He was sitting adjacent to the otter and had a bandage around the tip of his snout.

"Good point, Phil. How do we know this mysterious penguin is really a major threat to the zoo?" said Mason the chimpanzee after reading Phil's signing. The two of them were resting on the counter next to the cash register.

"He told me that he had an army of one hundred highly trained penguins ready to attack the zoo on his command." explained Marlene.

"Fish and chips," interrupted Skipper. "What are you talking about?"

All of the animals in the room directed their attention to the four penguins now standing in the middle of the room. Besides the ones that were speaking, there several other, small small animals crowded around Marlene and Julien. Skipper didn't recognize many.

"Gee, Skipper," said Marlene, "Do you always go on late night escapades?"

"Ha, ha, very funny," countered Skipper.

"Whatever. Glad you're here," Marlene started, "A mysterious penguin broke into my habitat from the sewer entrance today. He was asking me a lot of questions about you."

"What kind of questions?" asked Skipper, arching a brow.

"He was asking me about where you were, really," responded Marlene.

"Then he was attacking Marlene, and I, your king and valiant fighter, scared the fishy penguin away with a deep battle cry." said Julien, smiling widely.

"Uh, your majesty, you got punched in the nose and gave up," corrected Maurice.

"Lucky hit," said the lemur king with a dismissive wave of his hand.

"Anyway, before any of that," continued Marlene, "he pretty much described this whole zoo to me. He knew who I was, and he described Julien, Maurice, and Mort. He even knew who Rodger was. The scary part of that is that none of us have ever seen that penguin before."

"What did he look like?" Kowalski asked, producing a clipboard and pencil from nowhere and getting ready to draw a sketch.

Marlene explained how he looked much like Skipper with one blind eye. Despite random outbursts from Julien trying to make the penguin seem larger than life and make him seem like more of a hero for his bravery, Marlene managed to get her point across. Skipper looked at Kowalski's drawing. He didn't recognize the penguin; he thought he was just looking at himself with a mohawk.

"How would this penguin know about all of us, if we have no idea who he is?" Private asked, peering over at Kowalski's sketch.

"That's what we're wondering," said Mason.

"He must have been observing us from a distance for some time," concluded Kowalski. "Whoever he is."

Skipper crossed his flippers in thought. He wondered about the pigeon he had seen in the alleyway and the penguin she claimed to have killed her husband. Her description was not anything remotely close to Marlene's. Marlene didn't mention anything about the penguin being half robot. Still, he had a gnawing feeling that the two penguins were the same thing. After all, the pigeon might have been crazy.

Noticing how the room grew quiet for a few moments, Marlene continued to finish her story. "What's really got me creeped out is how this penguin said if I didn't tell him where you were, he was going to attack the zoo with an army."

"An army of what?" asked Kowalski.

"'Highly trained penguins' apparently," responded Maurice.

"Why, an army of penguins? That's completely idiotic." Mason said, also crossing his arms.

"Not as idiotic as you may think," said Skipper quietly. Nobody seemed to hear.

"Right before you came in we were debating about what to do." Marlene said.

"My opinion matters the most," said Julien, "and I say that we should move all of our things to a new zoo."

Several animals countered Julien with arguments against picking up and moving all because of one silly sounding penguin. Julien simply frowned and grumbled under his breath.

"Well this penguin was pretty easily frightened," commented Maurice.

Marlene nodded. "True, but he also didn't have his army to back him up."

"That's if he even has an army," countered Mason, reading Phil's hands.

"Anyway," Maurice said. "we should stay put. If this penguin comes back, we can fend him off. If he tries to bring his army, the people won't let him just waltz in here and destroy the whole zoo.

Several of the animals in the room agreed, including Kowalski, Private, and Rico. Skipper seemed distant. He couldn't keep his mind from comparing the penguin described by the pigeon and the penguin he had seen Kowalski draw.

"That would be the best course of action," agreed Skipper finally. "There's no point in running away. Maurice is right, after all. It would be impossible to move that many penguins through the city without getting animal control called."

"Do not you understand? We are all in serious danger you silly penguin!" Julien said, sounding dramatic. All of the animals ignored his random outburst, knowing that he was just struggling with his giant ego.

"I for one am tired of the problems associated with that sewer entrance in your home, Marlene," said Skipper, "We're going to seal that off once and for all."

Skipper knew of all the problems that particular drain had caused, starting with the investigation of a strange noise coming from beneath Marlene's home. That had been Skipper's first time down in the sewer, and he remembered feeling fear for the first time in a long time.

Feeling dismissed, most of the animals left the Zoovenir and went back to their exhibits to go to sleep. Julien was still trying to blow the whole story up, but he eventually gave up and went back to the lemur habitat with Maurice and Mort. Soon it was just Skipper, Marlene, and the chimps left in the room.

"Skipper, did you ever find that food store you had Phil look up?" Mason asked.

"Yeah, we managed to find some fish but only in these weird metal casings." Rico held up the can of tuna that he was still holding. It was dented from beating the window.

"Well, Phil was reading the paper this morning and we found some information that may be interesting to you." Mason explained. "There's been a huge shortage of fish all on the east cost, and it derives directly from the fact that there seem to be no more fish in the ocean. The paper said that fishermen all over have given up simply because there are no more fish to catch. The whole fishing industry in New York has been crippled by this odd event. People are complaining because they can only get imported, canned fish from Europe, where the fishing is very good, apparently. All of the world's best scientists are baffled."

Skipper rubbed his beak, "That's not good news for us penguins."

"Skippah, I don't want to eat fishcakes," said Private.

"Neither do I. But as long as we can get fish in these cans, we won't have to."

"Thanks again for the info, mammal," said Skipper to the chimpanzees, who nodded simultaneously before leaving the Zoovenir for their habitat.

"Now, Marlene," Skipper said, "let's get rid of your little sewer issue."

Marlene and Skipper left the Zoovenir, shutting the lights off behind them. Rico, Kowalski, and Private followed closely. When they were close to Marlene's habitat, Skipper signaled his men to assemble and lift up a manhole cover just outside. It wasn't too much of a difficulty, as Rico had lifted them up before on his own, and the four of them were able to carry them into Marlene's exhibit without must difficulty.

Once inside, Skipper instructed Rico to lay the solid manhole cover directly on top of the grate that already existed. Then, Rico regurgitated a blowtorch and smiled widely as he welded the two pieces of metal together. There was no way anyone or anything was going to be able to use that particular sewer entrance again, Skipper thought.

Covering the sewer was of no particular loss to any of the animals in the zoo. They used the sewer to move around the city, but there were plenty more access points around the zoo and just outside. The only reason they used Marlene's was for quick access to her habitat or to go see Rodger the alligator in the sewer, which they rarely did.

"Thanks a lot, Skipper," Marlene said, smiling, after all the work had been done. She had covered the unsightly manhole with a fabric mat she had taken from the Zoovenir gift shop long ago.  
"Not a problem," responded the leader penguin.

The four of them saluted Marlene and then made their way back to the penguin HQ. It was late, and even the city had quieted down to some extent. Judging by the moon, Kowalski told them that it was well passed midnight. Skipper didn't like to run operations so late into the night, but the day's events had called for it. When the reached the bunker they all took their bunks, exhausted from their journey to the food mart.

Skipper heard Rico's snoring within moments after he had said lights out. Private's small breathing noises soon followed. He assumed Kowalski was also asleep, and closed his eyes and attempted to do the same. He couldn't though; he couldn't stop his mind's senseless buzzing.

"Are you okay, Skipper?" Skipper heard Kowalski's voice. He opened his eyes and saw the penguin leaning down and looking at him with a look of concern visible in the faint light.

"What do you mean?" the leader penguin responded.

"At the market, after the alarm sounded, you froze up and didn't move for a while. It looked to me like you suddenly realized or remembered something important. I was just curious if it was something bothering you."

Skipper smirked. Kowalski had always been able to read him like a book. "Nothing at all, soldier. I was just momentarily stunned by the loud noise."

Kowalski looked at him for a moment, and then seemed to buy it. "Alright. Goodnight, Skipper."

"Goodnight, Kowalski."

* * *

**AN/ Sorry for the week long haitus. I hate writing unsuspenseful chapters like this, and I was dealing with some writer's block. Also, please review! Each time you read a chapter and don't review it, a puppy dies. \AN**


	10. So Close

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 10 - So Close**

Where was he?

He waddled up to the tall gates and looked up at the clock above him. It read three twenty three AM, but he could care less. He looked at the two bronze statues of monkeys on either side of a large bell, each holding a large hammer, ready to strike the bell on the turn of the hour. He wondered what these strange things were doing on top of a doorway.

He turned his head from side to side, looking for a possible entryway. He saw a brick wall that he could climb. No, that was too tall. He saw some metal bars he could attempt to pry apart. No, they were much too thick. He saw a lamppost he could attempt to shimmy up and get himself over the wall. No, the surface was slippery with condensation. He could attempt to dig under the wall. No, the ground was made of impenetrable concrete.

He ran his flipper over the surface of the brick, looking for a hidden switch or lever. He came to a portrait. A painting, he thought. He ran his flippers around the outside of the frame; it mattered not to him what was on the painting. He found a small inlet in the wall behind the frame and slid the tip of his flipper into it. He pulled, and to his surprise, it swung open, nearly throwing him off balance.

He didn't know where he was. All he knew was that he needed to get inside this place. His target was inside.

Behind the painting was a hole carved out of the wall. He jumped up into it and saw that it went all the way through to the other side of the barrier. He smiled, knowing that his target was vulnerable. He knew that his target wouldn't see him coming. His target probably wouldn't even fight back against him.

He had learned that the element of surprise was one of the most vital strategies any soldier could hope to use against his enemy. He had known that an ambush was they way to go against unsurmountable odds. He had been trained to hug the shadows around corners and jump out at the most unexpected moment, silencing the hostiles before they could even scream. Johnson had shown him that.

He silently slipped through the zoo, looking at the enclosures around him. He saw the different animals sleeping. The elephants, the tigers, the gorillas, the lemurs. He passed each one by in succession, knowing that they were not his target.

That pigeon he killed wasn't his target either. He had grieved at first, wondering what would happen to him for taking the life another. He realized, however, that his flippers were already stained with the blood of countless others. He accepted himself as a killer, an assassin, a murderer. He had shot, sliced through, and slaughtered hundreds of other animals in the past. He had heard the soft thud of their bodies dropping to the ground. All of those animals were dead while his target still stood. He felt a powerful wave of anger roll over him.

He had reached a map. He cleared his head and looked up at the confusing symbols and drawings. He recognized the picture of penguins on the board and set off in that direction.

After he waddled for a short while, he came to a small, round enclosure surrounded by a short, iron fence. It wasn't hard for him to climb over the fence and after tossing his pack from the top of the fence to the small, concrete platform in the middle of the ring shaped pool, he jumped in with a splash. He resurfaced after a moment and proceeded onto the fake ice floe.

So this was where his target was hiding from him after all this time? He shook his head. He should have known his target would flee to the zoo. He probably wanted to recruit more soldiers for his horrible plans, more soldiers who think they're fighting for something worthwhile only to die for a madman. That's what had happened to Johnson.

He felt the burning tears in his eyes again. They stung at him, making him tense up with anger. It was all going to end here. After all his searching, hunting, waiting. He had finally tracked his target down and backed him into a corner. He began shaking slightly. He had prepared for this moment for far too long.

He reached the fishbowl entrance, almost as if he had rehearsed this several times before. He lugged his pack along behind him, but left it up on top of the ice floe. The only thing he grabbed from it was a jagged, rusty dagger.

He slid down the ladder with agility and stealth. He now stood in the darkness of the penguin's HQ, looking for any sign of his target. The light was faint and he could only make out the outlines of objects in the room. He held his breath and listened to any sign of movement, and only heard a quiet snoring sound coming form the other side of the bunker.

He took a few steps forward, tightening his grip on the handle of the dagger. He had killed so many times in the past, and each time he did, it was the wrong target. Now he was about to end it all, and his breathing quickened. The only sounds in the room were his near silent footfalls, the snoring, and his choppy breaths.

He stood now only feet from the sound of the snoring. He made out four slots in the wall, which he assumed were bunks. He could just see the outlines of four figures, one in each bed. He didn't fear the fact that his target may have already recruited several new penguins; they would see the truth when he destroyed his target.

He took a few more steps, but kept the dagger resting at his side. He didn't know which penguin was his target, and he didn't want to stab another innocent. The penguins his target recruited weren't at fault. They thought they were fighting for a noble cause and fought until they could no longer. He knew this because he too had fallen for his target's lies and deception. He too, long ago, had thought he was a hero when he was just being used. He clenched his beak and gingerly fingered the crooked blade of the dagger.

Suddenly, the penguin on the top bunk stirred. He frantically jumped behind a piece of furniture, knowing he couldn't be seen. Peeking over the top, he could see the top penguin crawl down the adjacent ladder and waddle across the room. It was a short and stubby penguin, probably very young. He thought about how his target prayed on the young and naïve, like Johnson.

The penguin across the room opened up the refrigerator door and grabbed a juice box that was nearly as big as he was, poked a straw through the top, and began sipping. The penguin's eyes were tired and drifted around the room illuminated only by the open refrigerator. Suddenly it's eyes fell on his own and he froze. They looked at each other, him peering over the top of what he assumed was a couch, and it quietly sipping its juice. What seemed like an hour passed, before the penguin replaced the juice box in the fridge and shut the door. He sighed quietly with relief, thinking he had avoided detection. On the contrary, a loud alarm began blaring and the lights came on in the HQ.

"_Intruder alert!_" cried a loudspeaker. He watched as the four penguins jumped out of bed with amazing speed and assembled in a defensive position. He saw the small penguin say something that he could not hear to another penguin with a flat head near him. He recognized him, it was his target.

The four turned on the couch and the bulky penguin on the end coughed up what he assumed was a flamethrower. Not thinking, he jumped out from behind the couch and flanked the four penguins, who were focused on the furniture that the short one had pointed out. He charged, dagger at the ready, and tackled the leader to the floor. He would have to be quick, he thought, as the other three would be on top of him in no time.

He posed the dagger, ready to strike, and the penguin below him struggled. He was ready to smash the dagger down into the penguin's chest. He was ready to finally end his struggle. All the time he had spent searching and all the innocent lives he had taken were for this moment. Sarah had died for this moment. His unborn child had died for this moment.

He looked into his target's blue eyes. They were a clear, crystal blue. They seemed like eyes that were usually full of energy and life, but were now filled with fear. He froze. His target noticed, and used the momentary stun to throw him off of himself.

By now, the other three penguins, including the flamethrower wielding one were ready to pummel him. His dagger lay on the ground several feet from him and he was defenseless. If it hadn't been for a raised flipper from his target, he was sure he was in for a beating. His target took a step closer and looked at him, his eyes no longer showing fear.

"Manfredi?" it asked. The voice seemed to go deep inside of him and wrench at his most forgotten memories. He recognized it, yet he didn't know from where.

_"Manfredi!" Skipper called, clutching a glowing cylinder in his hands. "We've got to go. Now!"_

_"I'm not leaving without Johnson!" he called back, heading the opposite way. The building around them was collapsing, leaving only a few precious seconds to make a decision._

_"Johnson is dead, let it go!" shouted Skipper, looking desperate. "Now c'mon!"_

"Manfredi?" The penguin he now recognized as Skipper leaned over him.

"Johnson is dead," he said quietly. Skipper seemed stunned by the words.

Suddenly he felt very nauseous and dizzy with confusion. He felt like the walls of the HQ were closing in on him. He found it heard to breathe. He looked frantically for a way out, and found the ladder he had slid down to enter the bunker. Scrambling to his feet, he dashed for it. The penguins in the room didn't stop him, not even Skipper made an attempt. He left his dagger on the ground, and crawled up the ladder into the cool night air. In a flash, he was gone, sprinting as fast as little legs could carry him through the zoo. Skipper watched him flee through the fishbowl hatch.

"I thought you were dead too, Manfredi," he said softly to himself.

* * *

**/AN: **Sorry for another long hiatus. I was growing very unenthusiastic with this story, but now I will write chapters as often as I was before.

Judging by some of my reviews I'm getting, I have a feeling some of my readers are having trouble following this plot. Since it switches around a lot and won't make a lot of sense until later, if you're confused, let me know in a review or in a PM and I'll let you know whats going on. Anyway, thanks a lot for reading my story as always, and please review! **:AN\**


	11. The Knife

Skipper's log. 0200 hours on July the sixteenth.

_"Not much has been gone on in the last month. It turns out that bunker we were building when we first arrived here wasn't really a bunker, but rather a giant freezer. Some penguins have been assigned to bring ice and snow down from a nearby mountain, and that has been placed in giant containers suspended in the middle of the bunker. We drop all of our fish in there, which is kept below freezing to stop the fish from rotting. It's just about full now, and fish is getting increasingly harder to find in the bays and coves around our little fortress. Its a wonder what's going to happen after this job is done. _

_"Manfredi, although is morale is down, has been consistently bringing in the largest haul of fish and has occasionally been ordering around penguins our rank. He finally got noticed earlier today and is supposed to gain a promotion to corporal sometime next week. Makes me glad not just because he deserves it, but because having a teammate and friend higher up will help us get better knowledge of what is going on around here. _

_As for Johnson, he's finally starting to loose his belief that we're actually fighting something, as most of the men have already. He's become very quiet, and spends more time writing in his journal than anything. Manfredi yelled at him a few days ago for nearly falling off a cliff, and he almost looked like he was crying. I can imagine how he must feel, though; having your dreams shattered isn't something that goes down easily."_

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 11 - The Knife**

"What was that all about, Skippah?" asked a very confused and shaken up Private. Skipper had closed the hatch and descended the ladder back into the HQ.

"An old friend came to pay me a visit, I guess," answered Skipper. To be honest, he was just as confused as his younger comrade.

"He was your friend?" said Kowalski, who had picked up the crooked dagger that Manfredi had left and was examining it. "Then why did he just try to kill you?"

"No idea."

"So that was Manfredi, Skippah?" Private said, "I remember you mentioning him before in the past, but you always said he was dead."

Skipper pondered over his past musings of his old teammates. The Manfredi he knew in his memories was not half robot. The Manfredi he knew wouldn't have snuck up on him with the intention of killing him. Manfredi had been like a brother to him, up until he had died. "I thought he was dead. I mean, I saw him die."  
Private gasped. "So we just saw a zombie? A _robot_ zombie?" His eyes became wide with fear.

"Private, that's highly illogical," responded Kowalski, "zombies are a myth. One can not scientifically bring the dead back to life; there's several insurmountable barriers that would need to be overcome before such an act would be possible. There's obviously a logical and scientific explanation for this, as there is for everything. Right, Skipper?"

"I don't know."

"The only explanation was that this Manfredi never died in the first place."

Skipper pondered over these words.

_"Johnson is dead, let it go!" he shouted, looking desperate. "Now C'mon!"_

_"Leave no penguin behind," said Manfredi back to Skipper before he turned to run back into the collapsing bunker complex. _

_"Manfredi!" cried Skipper. He clutched the glowing cylinder in his hands and looked on as a portion of the ceiling collapsed, blocking the entire passageway that Manfredi had run into. "Manfredi..."_

It was true that Skipper had not actually seen his comrade die. That had been the last moment he had saw his friend, his teammate, his partner, his brother. He had stood there for a few moments, wondering whether to run back in to help Manfredi. He couldn't, though. The world was counting on him to complete his objective. He hadn't heard from Manfredi from that day onward, and he had assumed the corporal had died.

"Skippah?" Private spoke, breaking Skipper's thoughts.

"What?"

"What happened with Manfredi? You've never really told us the whole story. I mean, you've mentioned him before in the past, but I never actually thought he was a real person."

"He was a great penguin..." Skipper sighed. Those were painful memories to dig up. He decided to change the subject. "Let me see that knife."

Kowalski handed him the dagger that Manfredi had very nearly stabbed Skipper with. The handle was wooden and wrapped in blue cloth, and the blade was crooked and slightly rusty. The dagger made him feel nostalgic, but he couldn't quite place it anywhere in his memories.

"Skipper, are you alright?" asked Kowalski, who had noticed his leader's long pauses and sensed something may be wrong. "You seem a little shaken up by this whole thing."

"What? Yeah, yeah. I'm fine, Kowalski."

The taller penguin arched a brow. "Skipper, we might be able to help if you let us know the whole story."

Skipper looked at his strategist. Part of him wanted to unload the whole story onto his teammates. He had never told a soul before in his life since that one fateful day. The mission had been completed, and he had honored Manfredi and Johnson's deaths by recognizing that they died to save him and every other living thing on the planet. He had since forgotten about his two comrades though, and suddenly he felt very guilty. He had mentioned them before, but mostly in a joking manner.

"That's a story for another day," Skipper finally concluded.

Kowalski's brow remained arched but he nodded in understanding. He waited a few seconds before speaking. "Well with that matter settled, I think it's time to begin thinking about the matters of zoo security. There's been two break ins with threats made in the last week, and we need to make sure the animals are safe." He flipped open his clipboard. "I suggest that one of us should keep watch for a portion of the night, and we could take turns in shifts. We could rotate on a biweekly standard, and..."

"No," Skipper interrupted Kowalski's mouth went agape—Skipper had never interrupted him in the middle of giving options before. "we don't need to worry about Manfredi. He wouldn't hurt any of the animals in this zoo, not the Manfredi I know."

"Skipper, he held a knife to your..."

"I know. I know. I have a feeling that he mistook me for someone else, though."

"_Huh?_" Rico responded, cocking his head in confusion. Private and Kowalski remained quiet, and silence enveloped the bunker.

"Back to bed troops. There won't be any more disturbances tonight." Skipper said as he made his way to the fishbowl ladder.

"But Skippah," argued Private, "where are you going?"

"I'll be right back. I need some time alone."

Private, Rico and Kowalski nodded in agreement, shrugged their shoulders, and then crawled back into their bunks.

Skipper emerged into the cool nighttime air. It felt good on his face. He still held the knife in his hand, which he toyed with mechanically. It felt familiar, but also like he had never held it before. He hated the confusion the dagger was giving him, and he tossed it aside.

Manfredi. Manfredi was alive. After all this time, Manfredi was alive. Manfredi had survived the impossible, and after all this time tracked him down to confront him again. But why? Was Manfredi trying to haunt him? The leader penguin sat on the edge of the ice floe and hung his head in his hands, slowly massaging his temples.

He didn't know what to do. He wanted to ask Manfredi questions. His old teammate new answers that he needed to know. Manfredi knew what ever became of Johnson. Skipper needed to find Manfredi and ask him. He needed to ask why Manfredi was half robot, why

But where did the Corporal go? He had seen the large penguin run down a pathway and outside of the zoo. He didn't know where Manfredi had gone. He didn't know where he could start looking. But he knew that he needed to find his old friend.

Skipper thought about his team. They would want to help him find Manfredi. They would stick by his side until they found him. The thought warmed his heart. But, he knew that this was not their problem. This was something Skipper had to to deal with himself. It was his confusion and uneasiness, not Kowalski, Private, or Rico's. He would have to keep this quiet.

* * *

**/AN: I know this is a painfully short chapter for the amount of time I've not updated. Just trying to show that I havn't given up on this story! **

**I wanted to make this chapter longer, but it was just one of those short transitional chapters. This story is going to wind up having a lot of these, unfortunetly. AN\**


	12. CIES

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 12 - CIES**

Those penguins got away again.

Alice sat in her office watching the tape play on a small black and white television sitting on her desk. She leaned back in her office chair, her masculine features and red hair illuminated by the glow of the television. Her hands were folded on her chest and she contemplated what to do next.

She knew that they were up to something, although she didn't know what. She had caught glimpses of them outside of their exhibit on more than one occasion. She would just see them out of the corner of her eye, and she would swear she saw them doing acrobatic flips and swinging around lampposts. Once she even thought she saw one of them in the gift shop, but she figured it was just a stuffed animal.

She needed to find out what they were up to. If word got out that those penguins were roaming around the zoo at their free will, all hell would break loose. If the annoying little kids saw them outside the exhibit, they would freak out, scream, and run all over the place. They would tell their mothers and fathers about the penguins, who would call animal control. Animal control would come to the zoo and capture the penguins. Then the even more annoying animal rights activists would claim that the penguins just want to be free and ship them off to Antarctica.

Those animal lovers had done it before with her zebra, lion, hippo, and sickly giraffe. They broke out once, and suddenly her zoo becomes public enemy number one. The people demanded that the zoo be shut down and the animals be returned to the wild. Unfortunately they got their way. She had hated that day. She missed out on three months of city funding. Thankfully the penguins had returned not much later, followed by three new lemurs, a new otter, and a new kangaroo. The city allowed her to reopen, but with much stricter animal guidelines that she hated even more than the animals themselves.

She returned her attention to the video. She had hired Green to keep track of the penguins twenty-four-seven. He owned a surveillance company and, apparently, had been providing security cameras and recording equipment for big businesses and banks for years. He had not once caught those penguins on one of their escapades, though. "I'm sure it was just a video glitch," he said when the video blanked out for a few crucial seconds. "That was just a newspaper that got stuck to the lens," he said when the view became obstructed. "Must have been one of your zoo guests," he accused when he stumbled upon a smashed camera on the ground. It was never his fault when it came to his cameras, it was always something else.

Even though, he had been making his cameras more and more concealed and harder to detect. They moved from the top of lampposts to thick bushes and in false bottoms of garbage cans. It had worked to some extent; there were fewer 'camera glitches'. Alice doubted that the guests even knew where the cameras were anymore. The first big success came about a month ago. They had nabbed two minutes of footage of the penguins doing the most acrobatic flips and tricks she had ever seen out of an animal of that size. She kept the tape close to her in her office and watched it every few days. The more she watched it, the more that she thought the penguins were actually fighting. She tried to shake her head of the thoughts, though. Penguins don't fight, well except with their beaks, right?

After that lucky video, nothing appeared on the tapes anymore. There were obstructions and obscured the video every now and then, the most recently being just a few days ago, shortly after the zoo had closed. The next morning, she had found her computer tampered with and she knew that the penguins were outsmarting Mr. Green. They were up to something, she was sure of it. She had wasted much time, energy, and way too much money on trying to catch them in the act before they got her zoo shutdown again. She was head zoo keeper, and frankly, she wanted to know everything that went on around the zoo.

Suddenly, the door to her office opened. A tall man wearing a zoo uniform stood in the doorway. Her assistant. He hesitated a little after seeing that she was all alone, in the dark, watching her penguin videos again.

"Alice," he said, "Mr. Green is here to see you."

"What? Why?" She responded, hitting pause on the tape player. She had forgotten that Andrew Green had called a few days ago to schedule a meeting with her today.

"He said he's got a huge preposition for you."

"Send him in," she said plainly, removing her feet from her desk and straighting a few papers. Her assistant nodded, then left. He returned a few minutes later with a short, stout man. He had round cheeks, a large smile, and eyes that were too close together. He wore a casual suit and his hair was combed over his large balding spot. He carried a heavy looking, large briefcase.

"Andrew," she said, unenthusiastically, "how nice to see you again."

"Please, call me Mr. Green." Alice never understood his need to be called a formal name. She figured it had to do with his self-confidence issues from being fat and bald. Either way, he was Andy to her.

"Whatever. So, what's on your mind?"

Andrew glared at her for a moment, and then continued. "Well, I know you're getting frustrated with my state-of-the-art surveillance system always malfunctioning, right?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"I know tracking these penguins is important to you, for whatever reason that might be."

"Get to the point."

"Right," he said, putting the heavy briefcase on Alice's desk with a loud thud.

"What the heck is this?" she asked.

"This, my friend, is the Cyclops Invisible Eye System, or CIES." The chubby man flipped open the briefcase to expose a fancily arranged set of LCD monitors, several wound up cords, a few styrofoam boxes, and a few antennas all secured in foam. Andrew continued, "This technology is still in the prototype phase, but it is ready for a test run. It's really quite simple. There's a few very tiny cameras in here." he held up a styrofoam box. "they're very small, almost too small to be seen by the naked eye. These little cameras can take high resolution photos, transmit live video and audio from anywhere via satellite to these monitors, and also contain GPS tracking chips."

Alice reached a grubby hand and grabbed one of the monitors out of the box. It was small for her hands, with a few tiny buttons on the side and a screen only a few inches across. "So how will this help me track those penguins?"

"Thats where the tininess of the cameras becomes handy. They can be put virtually anywhere, and they will last about a month on their microscopic lithium batteries. You can put them on a wall, inside a locker, or maybe you could even place one..."

"Wait," Alice interrupted, "won't these just screw up like your other junky cameras?"

"The inability to detect these cameras will make sure those guests of yours don't break them."

"My zoo guests don't mess up your cameras, those damn penguins do."

"If you say so. Anyway, the great thing about these is the fact that they can even be implanted into a living thing, without said creature even knowing about its presence.

Alice thought this over for a second. "Wait, are you implying that we drill mini cameras into the penguin's foreheads?

"Yes. That's precisely where the CIES gets its name, believe it or not."

"Won't that, I don't know, kill them from lead poisoning or something?"

"In lab tests, rats implemented with the CIES were able to live fully functional lives without hindrance from the camera itself."

"So we'd be able to see everything the penguins see, and hear everything they hear?"

"Yes."

"Well, you've got me interested, Andy."

Andrew shot her a look of annoyance and irritation, but he quickly replaced his large smile upon his face. "Mr. Green, if you will."

"I've been paying you way too much money for a year now, Andy. I'll call you whatever I want to call you."

The stout man shook his head, regretting ever letting the redhead know his first name.

"But anyway," continued Alice, "when's the earliest time I can plant these suckers into those penguins?"

"Soon, but there's just one problem with that," Mr. Green responded, "It's not _technically_ breaking the law, but implanting these into the penguins comes very close to bypassing animal cruelty regulations."

"Why's that?"

"I said those rats lived on unhindered. I never said they did so painlessly."

"So it's going to hurt like hell?"

"Precisely."

Alice thought about her giraffe that had gotten shipped back to Africa. Animal advocates, trying to stand up for the sickly mammal, had made her spend thousands to care for its every need. She didn't want to know what they would do if they found out she would be purposely causing penguins pain.

"I don't care. I want to see it done."

"I knew you would."

"How would those animal lovers find out?"

"They wouldn't."

"Alright," said Alice, her tone growing more serious. "How much do you want for this whole setup?"

"Well it took me several hundred of thousands of dollars to develop this technology. But, since you're doing Green Industries a favor by letting us use the prototypes on your penguins, you can have them for free. That is, as long as your veterinarian can administer the CIES without delay."

"I'm sure he won't care," responded the burly redhead, "as long as he is convinced he's not hurting them."

Alice checked her watch. 2:30 PM. Dr. Punjab would be leaving in about an hour. If she wanted this done, she would have to capture those penguins and get the CIES to him as soon as possible.

"Well for once, Andy, I'm confident in something you've got planned," chuckled Alice.

"I'm glad you think so." returned the stout businessman, whose smile seemed to grow even wider.

* * *

**AN/ This chapter might seem off topic, but its nessisary for later chapters of the story. And FYI, CIES is pernounced sort of like SIZE is, not SIEZE :p \AN**


	13. Memories

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 13 - Memories**

Manfredi was sitting in a dark corner of some building, some alleyway, some street, some city. He thought of Sarah.

* * *

_A tall, strong looking penguin stands on the top of a large snowdrift, looking out onto the horizon. His warm feathers softly shuffle in the arctic breeze. His eyes are locked onto the sun, which barely breaks the horizon before setting again. His brown eyes are glazed over and his face is blank, giving him the appearance of a statue. He stands with confidence in the icy air, catching the only glimpse of the sun in months. It warms him, if only for a few seconds. No smile pulls at the penguin's beak._

_Another penguin trudges up the snowbank. She is sleeker then the strong penguin, more slender and simple. She stands next to her mate and looks out into the same sunset that he stares at. She breathes in the sun's warmth. The strong penguin notices her presence, and tilts his head towards her. She looks back at him, the sun glistening off her jade green eyes. They stare at each other for a few minutes. He wishes that he could see past her eyes and into her thoughts like she could him. She wonders why she always knows what he is thinking. Slowly, the corners of her mouth turn upward into a smile. His face remains blank; a facade lacking emotion. _

_This continues until he redirects his sight to the sun, which is very nearly set. She inches closer to him and leans up against him, her head gently resting on his chest. He hesitates, but slides a strong but gentle flipper around her, pulling her in a little closer. They stare into one another's eyes once again. She speaks._

_"I love you, Manfredi."_

_No response. Not even a twitch. She worries that it was too strong, too soon. He looks at her with eyes that are impossible to read, barriers to most. She sees beyond them, though, and knows that his heart radiates with unmatched compassion and sensitivity. She diverts her eyes from his, feeling embarrassed. He responds by returning her gaze to his by using a flipper to gently lift her beak back up. _

_"Why tell me this now?" he began. His voice sounded not angry, but almost quavered with the slightest hint of sadness. _

_She worries about him. She watches him from across town. She watches how he goes about his business alone. He doesn't stop to talk to anyone. He disappears for days at a time. Not many people know his name._

_"I... I... I just..." She can't find the words to express what she is trying to say. Too strong, too soon._

_"I know you watch me. I know you know me." He speaks casually, like nothing bothers him. "Why?"_

_"I care for you, Manfredi," she says, openly._

_He seems startled by these words. His eyes light up, and the facade drops. He knows he hasn't heard anyone say that to him for eons. His uncle was the last one; he passed away when he was only a chick, eaten by a lion seal._

_She knows what he is thinking. "I know you're so drawn back because you feel lost and like everyone hates you."_

_"Sarah," he begins, his voice steady, "why do you see so much in me?"_

_She can't help but smile. "The real question is, why doesn't everyone else?"_

_He smiles._

_"I love you, Manfredi."_

_"I love you, too, Sarah."_

_The world grows dark around them._

_* * * * *_

_He strides into their home, carved out of solid snow and ice. The walls are translucent, although no sun illuminates the room. The only light comes from a single candle in the middle of the area, placed on a counter carved from snow. His eyes fall upon his fiancé, chopping a large fish at the kitchen counter. He walks up behind her, wraps his flippers gently around her waist, and nuzzles his beak into her neck. _

_"Aw, Manfredi," she says compassionately, turning around._

_"How is everything, my love?" he says, smiling wide. _

_He has changed much since they first met. She helps him deal with the grief of his uncle's passing, emotional trauma locked deep inside of him. The strong penguin smiles now, withholding his facade of inhuman lack of emotion. He laughs when things are funny, and grows angry when when he feels he needs to get angry. Nearly everyone in town knows his name now: Manfredi the Hunter._

_"Just wonderful." she responds after kissing him lightly. "I have big news for you."  
"Oh?" he wonders. "Just what might that be?"  
She gestures down to her feet, where a flap of warm feathers gently hugged an ivory egg. "We're parents."_

_The strong penguin doesn't know what to say. He is overcome with excitement and happiness. He races out of the building screaming "I'm a father! I'm a father!" She chuckles and returns to her dinner preparations._

_Manfredi runs up and down the streets paved with ice, grabbing and hugging each random passerby, telling them the good news. They congratulate the strong penguin, and he beams triumphantly. _

_He will name his son Fredrick. He will name his daughter Sarah. He will teach his child everything he knows. He will play with him or her when he's home, and will think about his child when he's away. He continues moving through the streets, letting the world know the news._

_The world grows dark around him._

_* * * * *_

_"Sarah," he says compassionately to the green eyed penguin. The room feels cold and dark._

_"What about our child?" she returns, gesturing to the ivory egg at her feet. Her face, which usually expresses happiness, now expresses sadness and confusion. _

_The strong penguin is at a loss for words. He had not thought about his unborn. He feels stupid._

_"I-I want our son or daughter to grow up in a world worth growing up in." he says simply, confident with his answer. She is unmoved. He continues, "If that means going to war, then I'm not about to turn down the chance."_

_"What is this war even about?" she wonders, "What could a bunch of penguins be fighting?"_

_"I... I don't really know..." he responds, ashamed. _

_"Then why do you want to fight it?" she says, throwing her flippers into the air. Her face expresses desperation. _

_The strong penguin knows why he wants to fight. He wants to do something with his life, but he feels like he should not tell her about it. He wants to go experience some excitement, action, adventure. She would think that would be stupid. Her expression shifts to one of understanding. He is surprised._

_"If this is important to you," she says, "then you should go. But if our child is important to you, you should stay."_

_He looks into her eyes. For the first time, he knows what she is thinking. He pulls her into his chest before looking back into her eyes and speaking._

_"I will return before our egg hatches," he says. He hopes she will smile. "What could happen?"  
"What if you die?" She brings the point out quickly. Too hard, too fast. He is startled, and his face falls blank. She begins crying. _

_He doesn't respond, only stares into her eyes, lacking emotion. _

_"I love you, Manfredi," she says, "I don't want anything to happen to you." She sees the burning compassion, growing sensitivity, unlimited caring behind his eyes again._

_"I promise you, Sarah," he says, "Nothing will happen to me."_

_She smiles, her face illuminated by the candle in the middle of the room. The flame extinguishes. _

_The world grows dark around her._

* * *

Manfredi thought about his failed promise. He thought about his lost love and his child that was never given a chance at life. He wished he never would have left them, never would have destroyed the bond that they shared. Manfredi wished he could go back in time and undo the past.

The strong penguin, now weak, lost, and tired, pulled his knees into his chest and began to weep.

**AN/: I put a lot of emotion into this chapter, so it would be great if you told me what you think about it! Also, this is probally one of the most important chapters in the book. The title is finally starting to make sense, right? :\AN**


	14. Groggy

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 14 - Groggy**

Very slowly, Skipper opened his eyes and peered at his surroundings. He was laying in his bunk, sprawled out on his stomach. He could see the entirety of the inner HQ; the fridge, the television, and table were all there. Some early morning light, tinted blue by the water outside the headquarters, was shining through the porthole window. He heard Rico lightly snore from above him. Everything was in place.

The only question was, how did he get here?

The last thing he remembered was smiling and waving for a couple of small children, which rewarded him by throwing popcorn. Rico had been in the HQ with his doll, Kowalski was working on some important calculations, and Private was watching a show on the television. Everything had been normal, but what had happened between that point and this one? The thought escaped him.

Skipper sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes with his flippers. As soon as he reopened them, he felt a very sharp pain in his forehead. His vision grew cloudy for a second and pins and needles ran down his spine. He clutched his forehead and fell back onto his pillow, gasping with loss of breath.

"Skipper?" said a voice.

"Kowalski?" asked Skipper, recognizing the penguin's deep tone.

"You're awake. Good." returned the intellectual. Skipper turned his head to catch a glance at Kowalski, who was tinkering with some objects on the table. Kowalski looked at Skipper with concern.

"Skipper, we may have a problem."

Skipper knew when Kowalski said that, it was never a joke. "Yeah? What's that?

"When Alice came and tranquilized us, she took us to the veterinarian." explained Kowalski.

"Wait, Alice tranquilized us? When?"

"Last evening, Skipper. Don't you remember?"

Kowalski's words brought the memory of the incident flooding back. He explained what he remembered to Kowalski.

* * *

_"Aw, isn't he adorable?" said a small boy to a small girl standing next to him. They were leaning over the railing of the penguin exhibit, looking at Skipper, who was being cute and cuddly, and throwing random pieces of popcorn, which Skipper happily munched_.

_"What'd'you mean 'he'?" responded the girl, "It's obviously a she. And yes, _she _is_ _very cute."_

_"No, he's got too much muscle to be a girl. And he's got a bad attitude, just look at him!" said the boy, pointing at Skipper. Skipper only waved, rolling his eyes._

_"But it's cute like a girl," argued the other child, "and I bet she'd look great in a tutu."_

_"Yuck. Only sissy girl penguins wear tutus. He'd look much better in a ripped t-shirt."_

_"Says you--" The girl stopped talking as a large hand was placed on her shoulder. She looked up to see the smiling face of Alice, the head zoo keeper._

_"Hello there," she said sweetly, "I'm a zoo keeper here at the Central Park Zoo. Are you enjoying the penguin exhibit?" The children nodded. "I'm glad. I just have to ask you one favor, is that okay?" Another nod. "Don't feed the animals!" Alice suddenly shouted, slapping the popcorn out of the boy's hands. The two exchanged nervous looks at each other, then ran away from the red haired zoo keeper. Skipper glared at Alice for treating the kids in his zoo that way._

_"Heh," said the zoo keeper, who was now leaning over the railing and looking back at the leader penguin, "I'm finally going to figure out what you've been up to. Now stand still for me." _

_Alice reached into her pocket, producing a small, air-powered dart gun. Skipper recognized it as soon as the woman could aim it at him. He clenched his beak and prepared to do evasive maneuvers. Alice was too quick for him, though, and the first dart clipped him in the side. He pulled it out right away, but the sedative already entered his bloodstream. His vision became cloudy and he attempted to climb down into the fishbowl, but he felt his legs go numb, then his flippers, and finally he __blacked out._

_* * * * *_

_Skipper found himself laying on a hard table with a bright light above him. His mind was very foggy, and he could only barely crack open his eyes. Although his vision was impaired, he was still able to hear voices around him talking._

_"Are you sure this is safe?" said a man with a Hindi accent. Skipper recognized it right away as the zoo's veterinarian._

_"As sure as I'll ever be." responded a female voice. It must be Alice, Skipper thought._

_"The CIES is still in its prototype stage, but I assure you that it can be implemented into the penguin without hindering its ability to live as a... happy bird." said a third, male voice that Skipper didn't recognize. He sounded like he was smiling widely._

_"Alright. I am just worried for my veterinarian license. If this chip winds up hurting any of these penguins, I could loose my job." _

_"Don't worry, it won't affect them," assured Alice. _

_"What's this CIES, anyway?" asked the vet. Skipper heard footsteps and then the sound of running water. He figured the Hindi man must be washing his hands in preparation for the procedure._

_"Nothing special really." responded the unknown male voice, "Just a GPS tracking chip." Skipper thought he heard Alice chuckle._

_"Are you sure it should be placed in the forehead, then? I mean, GPS tracking chips are more commonly inserted into the back of an animal."_

_"Yes, very. This kind of GPS... uh... will receive a better signal if inserted superior to the eyes." the unknown man said._

_"I still am not so sure about this..."_

_"There's nothing to worry about it doc!" Skipper heard Alice clap the veterinarian on the back. "This is completely normal." _

_There was a few moments of silence, then the light above Skipper dimmed a little._

_"Hey, doc," said Alice, "I think this one is starting to wake up."_

_"Oh? Then we must apply another dose of stative..." A few seconds later, Skipper felt a sharp pinch in his side and then he blacked out again._

"Wow. After the operation was finished, the zoo keepers must have returned us to the HQ and placed us in our bunks." Kowalski said when Skipper finished his story. He reached up and touched the middle of his forehead, which resulted in a sharp yelp from the intellectual. "It must still be a little tender from the surgery, but that doesn't explain the electric pulses down the spinal cord." he said to himself.

"What now?"  
"According to what you told me, Skipper, Alice had us implemented with GPS tracking chips. That means that they can track our every movement no matter where we are on the planet." explained the taller penguin.

"That won't fly," Skipper said, "because not even I am supposed to know where I am at all times."

Kowalski nodded. "I am currently trying to see if the chips can be removed, but I can't even seem to locate the darn thing. This is a lot more complicated then those bracelets that scientist put on us last winter..." he touched his forehead again. Another yelp.

"Stop doing that, Kowalski. You're going to put yourself in a coma or something." said Skipper, shaking his head. The leader penguin, feeling a little less groggy, attempted to sit up again. He had more success this time, and he climbed down the ladder adjacent to the bunks and into the room.

"I need a magnifying glass," observed Kowalski, holding up a small mirror and trying to see his forehead in it.

"On it," responded the leader penguin. "Rico!"

There was only a particularly loud snore.

"Rico!" Skipper tried again, this time grabbing one of Kowalski's small books from the table and launching it at the weapons expert. The large penguin stirred, sat up, and touched the middle of his forehead. He, too, yelped in pain and fell back down on his pillow.

"Are we all going to do that?" said Skipper to himself. "Rico, front and center."

The large penguin climbed down the ladder, nearly falling, and then lined up across from the leader penguin. He swayed slightly in place, showing that the sedative had not fully worn off for him yet. "_Yack._" he said, weakly.

"Here's the situation. We were forced to make a surprise visit to the doctor last night and he planted some GPS tracking chips in our heads. Now, I need that magnifying glass I had you swallow a couple weeks ago."

Rico nodded, although slow compared to the Penguin's usual jerky movements, and then began heaving. Skipper held out his flipper and waited for the looking glass to come tumbling out of his explosives expert. Several agonizing minutes of hacking later, and Rico looked confused. He stopped trying to regurgitate the requested item and shrugged his shoulders.

"_Empty?_"

"What?" exclaimed Skipper.

"Oh, no," said Kowalski. "I knew they would eventually give Rico and X-ray and find all of our weapons. It was only a matter of time."

"So they took all of our weapons out of Rico?" said an angry Skipper.

"I'm afraid so," returned the intellectual.

Skipper put a flipper to his temple, being careful not to touch the center of his forehead. He sighed before speaking. "Well, at least there's still the weapons in the secret panel." He waddled over to the wall with the large, metal door, and pressed a brick down. The wall spun around, revealing a specially designed compartment for the different weapons that the team had acquired over the years. All of the weapons were safely on the wall. Skipper picked two sticks of dynamite from a shelf and tossed them to Rico, who swallowed them and burped. The leader penguin then closed the secret compartment.

"So, let me get this straight. The humans can track each and every one of our movements now, and they have all of our weapons?"

Kowalski flipped through his clipboard. "That's ninety-eight percent correct, Skipper."

"Youch!" exclaimed Private, who had woken up. Skipper figured he touched his forehead, as well. "What happened?"

Skipper told him what they had found out so far. "That's terrible!" said the younger penguin, gingerly touching his head.

"I'm currently trying to see if I can remove the GPS chip," explained Kowalski, "but I can't even find it."

"Keep looking into-" began Skipper, but his words trailed off when he felt pins and needles start at the base of his neck and then travel down his back. He clenched his flippers into tight balls as the electricity coursed through his nerves and into the ground. "Is there anything you can do about the electrocution?"

"I'm afraid not, Skipper. Although it should go away after a few days. If this GPS chip has a power supply with it, it may be contacting with key nerves and sending electrical pulses through them. But within a few days the ends of those nerves should die, stopping the pain."

"That's great to know," said Skipper sarcastically. He thought about Manfredi, and how he wanted to go find his old teammate. He would have a hard time leaving the zoo without Alice or the other zoo keepers knowing, now.

"Well, this is just great," Private said, as if to himself, "First we're running out of fish, then a crazy penguin threatens the zoo, then another crazy penguin threatens Skippah, and now every one of our moves are being tracked?" He looked around the HQ. "Too many weird things are happening lately, wouldn't you agree, Skippah?"

Skipper didn't respond. He was busy thinking about any way he could get out of the zoo without the zoo keepers tracking him. There would be no way. A little alarm would go off in one of their offices as soon as he stepped his foot outside the zoo, and then they would catch him and probably ship him off to another zoo. Things just wern't working out.

"Yes, Private," Kowalski answered for the leader penguin, "I believe you're quite right."


	15. Julien's Party

Skipper's Log. 2000 hours on July the thirtieth.

_"Manfredi received his promotion this morning. It was a sad spectacle, only took about four minutes and Johnson and I were the only ones there to see it. No matter, Manfredi was proud and was beaming brightly, telling us about how his fiancé would be so happy for him. Then, Manfredi was taken to a sort of orientation, I guess, and he didn't return until only a few minutes ago. _

_He returned solemn-faced and tired. Johnson picked on him by saying, 'You're lazy, Skipper and I worked our butts off all day and all you had to do was sit in a meeting!' We laughed, but Manfredi's scowl only seemed to deepen. Johnson shrugged his shoulders and apologized to him, but Manfredi didn't respond. That was something about Johnson; he nearly always apologizes even if he didn't really do anything wrong. It got annoying sometimes, but Manfredi and I have both grown used to it. _

_I waited a few minutes before I asked him what was wrong, but he only responded by saying that it was classified and he was not allowed to tell us or 'he would be put on the_ fireing line._'__ He had made a sarcastic laugh at Johnson, who flinched, before slipping into his bunk. I tried to further question him, but he pretended to be sleeping. Whatever happened in that briefing room, I'm not exactly sure, but I know for a fact that it was bad. _

_I'm worried for Manfredi right now, he is already stressed out after only his first day as a corporal. I can only wonder what sort of orientation he went through; maybe it had been excruciatingly painful or maybe it had been disappointingly boring. Maybe he's going to get separated from us, moved to another unit. Or... maybe he's just mad because they're decreasing fish rations. _

_I had meant to ask him if there is going to be any sign of us going into action soon, but I figured it would be a bad time to ask. I also wanted to ask about the fish freezer, mis-information and general lack of information provided for us soldiers, and an all-over lack of officers. The highest rank I've seen was Sargent Major, and that was on our first day. I've only seen our Staff Sargent a couple of times and talked to him once, and there's only a handful of corporals for the thousand penguins in our squadron. At first I thought it was a good thing because positions would be open, but now I'm starting to just get worried. How are they keeping three thousand nearly bored-to-death penguins from starting anything? I guess penguins are just good-natured creatures, after all._

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness**

**Chapter 15 – Julien's Party**

Marlene was concerned for the penguins.

They hadn't been out of their habitat in days. Nearly a week, actually. She had only seen tail or flipper of them. Every once in a while she noticed Skipper pop up from the fishbowl entrance of the bunker and peer around with his high powered binoculars. She noticed how he had pointed at the zoo staff center and wondered what he was doing. Spying on Alice? Occasionally, one or two of the penguins would come all the way up to the surface, for what she assumed was fresh air or sunlight. They would walk around the surface of the bunker, and the guests would notice. They would come over saying things such as, "Wow! The penguins are finally out of hiding!" The guests would crowd around quickly, and usually Skipper, Kowalski, Rico, and Private would all be smiling and waving for them, but recently there was none. As soon as the guests crowded around, the penguins on the surface of the HQ disappeared back down the fishbowl entrance. She noted how the fish-like cakes the zoo provided as nutrition for the penguins piled up in the fishbowl until a zoo keeper came to take the soggy and moldy ones away. Marlene wondered what they were eating.

Now she sat on top of her rock, legs pulled into her chest, peering down at the penguin exhibit. She was looking for any evidence of the penguin's normal life. She wanted to see them come barging into her exhibit without knocking. Even though she hated it, it was the penguin's normal behavior. She was worried about how they were staying in secret. She had never known them to be so quiet. Ever since arrived at the Central Park Zoo, she had watched the penguins bounce around the zoo every day. They got into fights with Julien, explored the tunnels beneath the zoo, or came over to her habitat to visit. All that before, and now nothing. Someone, or rather a group of people, don't change that drastically in that period of time unless something tragic happened. Suddenly, she began to worry more.

The otter rested her head on her knees and continued her stare at the penguin's habitat. A small child, resting on the shoulders of her father pointed at her and said, "Ooh, look at the pretty otter!"

She simply glanced at the girl, and then redirected her eyes back at the Penguin's HQ.

The girl tilted her head and arched a brow at the otter. "Never mind, this otter sucks. Lets go see the lions!" Her dad, whose head was just visible over the top of the brick wall, smiled a very tired and annoyed smile before trudging off to the other side of the zoo, girl bouncing on his shoulders.

Marlene didn't care about the zoo guests too much. Right now, her friends might be going through something hard.

_You should always be a caring friend,_ her mother had said to her and her brothers once night over oysters, _because friends are always there for each other. If you don't at least try to help your friends in their times of need, then you can't really consider yourself a true friend. _The otter suddenly wished she had went to see what was wrong days ago. Maybe Skipper wouldn't have been so 'classified' about it like he usually was.

Right then a penguin made his way up the fishbowl ladder and Marlene's eyes widened at the sight. It looked like Private, or it could have been Skipper. It was definitely Private; Marlene recognized his small, round head and his large belly. He made his way over to the edge of the pool, then stretched his arms and inhaled deeply. Marlene had seen the most of Private; he came out more than any of the other penguins. Some zoo guests saw him standing on top of the HQ, warming his feathers in the midday sun. They came over to see him, and Marlene saw him gently raise a flipper and wave to a little boy, who waved back. She smiled; it looked like the penguins were slowly going back to normal.

Suddenly, Private moved that flipper he waved with to his head, and then the other one. He took an awkward step backward and fell, which resulted in a loud gasp from the crowd. Although, one tall man quickly followed up with, "Slippy is back!" and they cheered. Marlene's smile widened. Private lay on the roof of the HQ. She wondered when he was going to get up. He didn't get up. The otter's smile vanished along with the cheers from the crowd. "Oh my, is he alright?" replaced the cheerful Slippy calls. Marlene stood up quickly, still looking at Private who lay, unmoving, on the concrete. This wasn't a performance. Her heart jumped into her throat.

She made her way down the hill quickly by sliding down the polished slide and plunking into the pool near the edge of her exhibit. When she emerged, she shook the water from her eyes and looked to see Julien standing at the edge of the pool, flicking water droplets off his white fur with his hands.

"All of this chlorinated water is not good for my kingly fur!" he exclaimed to himself, brushing off the little bit of water like it was napalm.

"Julien?" Marlene said, surprised by his presence.

"Oh, hi, Marlene," he said, freezing in mid-swipe of one of his legs.

"What are you doing here?"

"Oh, uh..." The lemur king seemed to think for a moment. "You know, de king was just out for a kingly stroll because it is such a nice day."

Marlene arched a brow before climbing out of the warm water and onto the land. "In my habitat?"

"Well, duh. Your habitat is part of de kingdom, too."

"Uh-huh." Marlene huffed, crossing her arms. Julien smiled apologetically.

"Actually, the real reason of me being here..."

Julien trailed off as Marlene shook her head, "Look, I don't have time for this right now. Private just passed out in the Penguin's HQ and I might be the only one who knows he's up there. I need to go tell Skipper. He could be hurt, ya know?"

"Oh," responded the lemur king plainly. Marlene thought she noticed the slightest amount of sadness in his voice and on his face, but it quickly vanished. Maybe it was disappointment. She didn't really care right now, why was she standing around?

She turned to leave, but Julien placed a hand on her shoulder then spoke quickly, "Wait, I came to invite you to triumph-over-de-evil-penguin party tomorrow."

"What?" Marlene exclaimed, a little more angrily then she would have if Private wasn't in trouble, "You're holding me up just to invite me to some stupid party about a fight you had with some creepy penguin _two weeks_ ago? Julien, you didn't even win that fight!"

"Well, de king needed a, uh, reason to..."

"Why am I wasting my time here? I need to go help Private!"

"Uh..." Julien whimpered. Marlene stormed off, and the self-proclaimed lemur king averted his eyes to the ground. Maybe, just maybe, if he hadn't spied on her so long, she would have agreed to go to his party.

The otter made her way quickly through the zoo, using benches and snack carts and cover. She carefully avoided being noticed by any of the zoo guests. It wasn't too crowded in the zoo, but several families still walked by. When she approached the penguin's habitat, she saw that the guests were still grouped around it, looking at the unconscious Private. She wouldn't be able to go directly into the exhibit; the guests would see her, tell a zoo keeper, and then Alice would board up her habitat twice as good. She sighed, then looked for the nearest sewer entrance.

Marlene heaved the grate of the sewer, but it barely budged. Rico made it look so easy. She pulled and pulled, but only managed to pull the heavy metal an inch or two. She continued pulling with all of her might, and eventually she made an entrance big enough to squeeze into. She slipped down the sewer, putrid air filling her nostrils right away.

Luckily she knew her way through the sewers, even in almost pitch black, now because she had been down here enough in the last few months. She mainly came down to visit Roger the sewer alligator, but she also enjoyed exploring the endless passageways. She had gotten lost a few times, and had grown scared. She had enjoyed the rush of adrenaline, the feeling of danger. In fact, the only real adventures she ever had were down here.

It was a short walk, although the streamlined otter ran most of the distance, to another sewer grade which lead to the underground tunnel system of the zoo. It was a fairly short and easily navigational system which allowed the zookeepers access to harder-to-reach exhibits. She heaved the grate, and slid through the opening. Then she ran the short distance to the penguin's secret entrance and burst through the fish on the wall that read _Private's First Prize_. Kowalski, who was standing in the middle of the room by a table jumped and spun around.

"Oh, you scared me, Marlene." he said, sighing with relief.

The otter opened her mouth to speak, but only a low wheeze came out. She suddenly realized that she was out of breath and her blood was racing. She took a minute to compose herself and then spoke.

"Private just passed out on the roof!" She said, still breathing heavily. "I saw him fall and not get back up!"

"_Huh?_" Rico, who was sitting in a corner of the room with his doll, said.

Just at that moment Marlene noticed a penguin sitting on the couch watching TV. She thought it was Skipper, but when he turned around she saw it was Private.  
"I'm fine, Marlene. Dun worry." he said, cheerfully.

Marlene was confused. "Wait... I just saw you..."

"Yeah, I passed out on the roof, alright," explained the specialist, "but I've gotten used to it by now."

Marlene was more confused. "Wait, what?"

"Don't you know?"

"Private, Marlene has no clue what has happened to us in the last few days," said Kowalski. "She doesn't know about the chips."

"Chips? What chips? Potato chips?" Marlene wondered.

Kowalski chuckled, "No, no. You see, Alice had us implanted with GPS tracking chips about a week ago. Unfortunately for us, she had them implanted in the exact center of our foreheads." Kowalski looked like he was trying to see his own forehead for a moment.

"What does that have to do with passing out?"

"I've concluded that the chips are giving off some kind of electrical pulse, and because of the proximity of the chips to our brains, those pulse signals are using our nerves as a highway. Every once and a while a particularly strong burst of energy will cause us to loose consciousness for a few seconds or minutes."

"Oh, so wait... you're not going to die or anything, will you?"

"Actually, K'walski had to spend a few hours explaining that one to me, really. He said the batteries in the chips don't have the power to interfere with necessary functions."

The intellect nodded. "And fortunately for us, our memories will remain intact." he added.

"So that's probably why you guys have been hiding for the last week?"

"Well, sort of. Skipper's had us on lockdown because he thinks that Alice is up to something more than just tracking us with GPS chips. Probably only because some zoo keepers came shortly after we got them and found our secret panel. I think it was just unluckiness."

"Your secret weapons panel?"

"Yeah, all cleared out. Now we're pretty much weaponless, considering Alice Had Rico's stomach pumped." Rico growled.

Marlene blinked in disbelief, "Was Skipper mad?"

"You bet," Kowalski affirmed. "Although, not as much as one would expect."

Marlene looked around the room. "Speaking of which, where is Mr. Leaderpants?"

"The Skippah's been leaving from time to time, but he won't tell us why. He's only gone for a few minutes at a time usually, though."

"I see," the otter responded. She crossed her arms.

"In fact, Skippah hasn't been quite like himself," Private continued. "He hasn't been issuing us orders as often as usual, and he gave us three days off already."

"And there was the time he declined his morning coffee," added Kowalski.  
"Yeah. We figure it's just the chip messing with his head, or the whole experience of having one added." Private finished with a hint of confidence.

Marlene nodded. In the corner of her eye, she saw Rico quiver with pain and then shake it off.

"Anything you can do about the electrocution?"

"I'm working on a neuroserum presently, to see if I can numb or kill the nerves around the GPS chip to stem the flow of electrical pulses. So far, results have been less than ideal."

The intellectual gestured to Rico, who moved his flippers, but Marlene noted how his left flipper hung loosely from his shoulder. It almost grossed her out.

Kowalski continued, "Luckily that was a temporary serum. It wound up numbing only the receptors in his muscles."

Marlene shook her head, "So you guys are all fine?"  
The door to the HQ suddenly opened. "I guess you could say that," said Skipper as he walked into the room.

"Skippah," saluted Private.

"Hey, Skipper. Where were you?" asked Marlene, looking at the penguin leader. Skipper paused before turning around.

"Classified, soldier."

Marlene looked at Private who shrugged his shoulders. She wondered why Skipper called her _soldier_. Was the response so conditioned now, that Skipper didn't even realize his folly? Marlene shook her head.

"Well if everything's good here, I'm going to get headed back to my habitat before they notice I'm missing. Oh, I guess Julien is having a party sometime soon, if you even want to go to that. I'll probably pass though."

Skipper looked a little angry for a moment that Marlene even brought up such a thing, but his expression quickly changed to intrigue. "A party? How big of a party?"

"I don't know, Julien didn't really say."

Skipper paused for a moment and considered something important. Marlene could tell it was something more than just choosing to go to a party or not. "Yeah. Yeah, alright. Team, we're going to that party when it happens"

"Skipper, are you sure? I don't know if I will have this formula perfected by then or not." Kowalski offered.

"Yeah. Yes I am. Just try to finish it before, and if not, I guess its not that big of a deal, right?"  
Marlene was relieved to see Private was alright when she got there, and now she worried for Skipper. Just accepting to go to a party wasn't like him. _Making_ his team go to a party was even less like him. Marlene wondered if it was really Skipper she was talking to, or that crazy penguin who had invaded her habitat a few days earlier. She thought about how Private said he wasn't quite like himself.

He looked like himself, that was for sure. She saw that the blue eyes, the short, wide beak, and the flat top of his head. His feathers were neat and clean. His chest was puffed out, giving him a tough guy feel.

"Uh, Marlene," Skipper said, "It's time you left."

The otter didn't realize she had been scrutinizing the leader penguin for about a minute and smiled embarrassingly. "Sorry, Skipper," she said, "see you guys later."

Skipper smiled.

* * *

**/AN:** What can I say? I'm lazy! Sorry I havn't updated in a month. I've been preoccupied with other unimportant projects like beating video games and what not. Honestly, the only reason I wrote this chapter was because my internet was down for two days. I wasn't exactly sure on how I wanted to write this chapter, though, so I do have at least some reason. Just wanted to thank all of you readers and for the feedback I'm getting. Thanks for staying loyal! **:AN\**


	16. Questions

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 16 - Questions**

* * *

**SKIPPER NEEDED TO LEAVE.**

What choice did he have? His entire world was falling apart. Alice had compromised the whole team and removed any and all weapons they had. Worse, she had implanted tracking chips in their skulls. Skipper couldn't stay knowing that he was going to be tracked everywhere he went.

On top of all of that, there was still the mysterious penguin that attacked Marlene in search for him but never returned. He didn't know who it was that might be after him, but he knew that the longer that he stayed at the zoo, the longer he would be at risk. He was at risk now more than ever, actually, because Alice assured he was defenseless.

But how could he just leave without a trace? Private, Rico, and Kowalski had always been loyal teammates and soldiers alike. Skipper had only met them less than a year ago, but already they were as good of soldiers as he was. He hadn't known a more loyal group of penguins, at least since—he shook his head.

What about Marlene, Julien, Maurice... even Mort? Marlene always looked out for him. Julien, Mort, and Maurice, well, they were helpful in their own special ways. Surely they would be hurt if he suddenly vanished? They would probably recover within a few days, though. His team wouldn't be so easy. They would all be hurt by the fact that he didn't say goodbye, but none more than Private. Private was so young, Skipper was sure the boy looked up at him like a guardian. He would be crushed if Skipper left, regardless of farewells.

Anyway, there's no way he could just walk out the door on them without saying even goodbye. But he couldn't say goodbye. They would ask to come with. He didn't want that.

The leader penguin crawled from his bunk and tiptoed as quietly as possible across the moon-lit concrete floor of the bunker. The water distorted the faint light and made little wisps of blue dance across the floor. They were like little strands of hope, but when Skipper waddled over them, they disappeared.

He had already been planning his disappearance for some time now. He wanted to make it as smooth as possible. Nobody would see him leave, and by the time they knew he was gone, he would be more than far enough away to ever be found. He had hidden a penguin-sized backpack with some basic supplies in the secret panel. He knew none of the other penguins would bother to look inside the presumably empty compartment.

He silently flipped the panel open, avoiding the noisy mechanism by prying it open himself. He gently slid his pack out through the small hole he had made, then set it on the floor. Inside was a small water bottle he had dragged out of the trash, the crooked knife left by Manfredi which he had kept hidden safely underneath his pillow, and several unopened cans of the tuna from the store heist. He wanted to take enough food to keep him sustained for a few days, but he also wanted to travel light.

The penguin waddled back to his bed and dug under his pillow one more time. He pulled out a small, rectangular device that had a only a red button on it and a small, green screen.  
Electro-magnetic Pulse generator, as Kowalski called it, although Skipper knew it as simply a radar jammer. He had the intellectual construct it some time ago, and he was glad he did. The EMP produced from the little device would be just enough to jam his GPS signal until he was out of range of the Alice's receiver. At least, that was what he hoped.

He walked back over to his pack that was spread out on the ground and slipped the EMP generator in between two cans of tuna. He thought of the tuna itself. He wondered if his team would be able to find anything else to eat besides fishcakes after the fish in reserve was gone. It almost made him want to stay.

But the leader penguin was all set to go. He was all set to abandon his family. He didn't feel any resentment at this point though. he already knew the hard part wasn't leaving, it was not turning around to come back. After all, he had already done this twice before.

The only question that remained was: _Where was he going to go?_ That part of the plan he hadn't worked out yet, but he was exactly sure _why_ he wanted to go.

Manfredi was out there somewhere. The robot penguin that attacked him had been almost unrecognizable, but when he had stared into the penguin's eyes for that split second, he knew that it was Manfredi. The ambition and adventure behind those eyes was unmistakable. But he had noticed something else in the penguin's eyes. Where he had one noticed hope and optimism, he had only seen confusion and resentment.

Resentment. Would he resent leaving? He shook his head.

He had a lot of unanswered questions. What had happened after he ran out of that collapsing infrastructure, cylinder in hand, and Manfredi ran back inside? How had Manfredi become part robot? What had ever happened to Johnson?

He didn't know where to start looking, but he knew Manfredi was close. The penguin must have tried very hard to track him down all the way to the Central Park Zoo. Skipper knew that Manfredi wouldn't have gone far after failing to kill him, for whatever reason that might have been. He had seen too much confusion in the penguin's eyes for him to run far.

Skipper rolled up his blanket and attached it to the top of the custom backpack. He slid his slippers through the slots and adjusted it to sit comfortably on his back. Then he slowly made his way up the ladder. This was it. He was leaving his team, and there was little to no chance he would ever see them again.

He almost stopped. But he kept going.

When he got to the top, though, the fishbowl entrance opened on its own. He nearly failed to stop himself from screaming out loud from surprise when he saw Julien's face looking down on him.

"Err... Hello, neighbor!" the lemur king nearly shouted. Skipper clamped a flipper over his mouth and shushed him.

"Julien, it's the middle of the night!" he whispered harshly. The tall lemur mumbled something through Skipper's flipper and shrugged his shoulders.

"Ugh, never mind," the leader penguin said softly. "Just let me up!"

Julien took a step back from the hole and Skipper climbed all the way out, closing it behind him. It didn't look like Julien had woken up any of the team, thankfully.

Skipper raised a brow and spoke, "Okay, explain yourself, mammal."

Julien took a deep breath. "De king, well, has a problem, with de, you know." He made the outline of an hourglass with his fingers in the air. Skipper looked confused. Julien slapped his head.

"Well, de king came to ask de small fishy-penguin about how de king might convince someone to come to his victory-over-the-evil-fishy-penguin party."

Skipper shook his head. "So you're having love problems?"

"No," Julien returned, taken aback, "de king doesn't have time for the mushy-gushy love stuff."

"Who is it?" asked Skipper, finding himself growing interested.

"De king would rather talk with the short penguin."

"Who is it?" repeated the leader penguin.

Julien looked uneasy as he made the symbol of an hourglass in the air again.

"C'mon, man, I understand that it's a woman!" Skipper snapped. "Unless you're having problems with father time. Are you going to tell me or what?

Julien averted his eyes, but quickly returned them with a small smirk on his face. "What's this for," he said, poking Skipper's backpack with a long finger. "Is de fishy-penguin leaving?"

Skipper batted his paw away. "That's not important. What's important is who you're having issues with."

Julien's smile widened a bit. "Are you going somewhere?"

"What? Uh," Skipper froze. Julien was trying to change the subject on him.

"You're going somewhere, aren't you?"

"It's classified, lemur. But I will let you know that it's somewhere very important," Skipper huffed, trying to close the conversation before it started.

Julien looked around him. "Skipper, it's de middle of the night!" he said, mocking what Skipper had said before. His grin grew from ear to ear. It almost gave him a maniacal appearance.

"I understand that, ring tail," responded the penguin, "but it's some classified recon. A scouting mission, if you will."

"At nearly midnight?"

"Yes."

Julien shook his head in disapproval. "Do de other fishy-penguins know about de _racon_?"

"_Recon_, Julien, _Recon_."

"Yeah, whatever. Anyway, do they know?"

"No. It's classified."

Julien crossed his arms. "Seems pretty stupid if you ask me."

Skipper clenched his beak. "And why's that?"

"Because you'll miss de victory-over-the-evil-fishy-penguin party tomorrow!" the lemur king responded quickly.

Skipper thought about what Julien said. His plan to leave tonight was obviously foiled by Julien. Julien knew that he was leaving and wasn't coming back. Skipper hated the fact that Julien could be very smart when he wanted to.

"Alright, lemur, you've got me," said Skipper, "I'll won't leave."

Julien's smile grew a little more, if that was even possible. "You'll come to my party, then?"

"Sure," lied Skipper.

"Alright. Make sure your small fishy-penguin friend comes, too, de king still needs to talk to him."

"Can do."

Julien nodded before turning around and leaping from the edge of the pool to the railing. Then he hoisted himself over and then made his way back towards the lemur habitat.

Skipper smiled a little himself. Leaving during the party would be even better then sneaking off during the night. He'd have much more cover from the commotion of the party and nobody would notice he'd left for much longer. With his current plan his teams would know he'd left right away when they woke up in the morning. With the party, they may wait a few days thinking he'd come back.

The idea of his team waiting for him to return when he never would made his gut wrench. But Manfredi was out there somewhere. Skipper had much too many unanswered questions.

And Manfredi had the answers.


	17. Gone

Skipper's log. 2200 hours on August the first.

_"Well it's finally happened. We were finally told today that we will be going into action in about one month from now. It's about damn time._

_"We all got together in the mess hall only a few hours ago to hear the good news. I finally caught another glimpse of our Sergent Major. He's a short fellow with a flat head not much unlike mine. He spoke to us with a voice that seemed to radiate confidence when he told us. Soon after he did, the entire room was almost hysterical with excitement._

_"There was no word on where we'll be going or what we'll be doing, but the other men are simply ecstatic with the idea that their hard work and dedication was actually worth something. I have to admit, so am I, but I have seen combat before and it's nothing to celebrate. We shouldn't be rejoicing that we're going into combat. We should be meditating, reflecting, and preparing. I don't think that the men realize that some of us are going to die a month from now. _

_"Johnson especially needs help realizing that fact, judging by the fact that he's been pretending to shoot imaginary hostiles for the last four hours. Combat isn't all it's cracked up to be, and I think he'll be in for a huge shock when we get to where ever it is we're going._

_"And Manfredi? Nowhere to be found. He's been missing for most of the day. He wasn't at the mess hall when the news was delivered. I figure he's just out discussing a battle strategy or being briefed on the whole situation, but it does worry me that he's still not back yet. That's mainly a feeling because of the fact that ever since he received his promotion, he's been very jumpy, paranoid, and I'm pretty sure he's become an insomniac. Johnson and I have asked him about it, but he only replies with a bark. _

_"Whatever is currently bugging him, though, I hope it solves itself before we go onto that battlefield in a month."_

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 17 - Gone**

"**YOU BOYS GO ON AHEAD, I'LL MEET UP WITH YOU AT THE PARTY."**

Those were the words he had said to Kowalski, Private, and Rico when they had left only a few minutes ago. Now he was sitting in the shelter of the HQ, watching those same blue reflections dance across the floor as he had watched the previous night. He slipped his pack, complete with all his supplies, over his back. He made his way over to the ladder, and sighed.

The leader penguin turned his head to look at the four bunks in the wall. He pictured Rico, Kowalski, and Private bounding out of bed in the morning, obedient and eager. He pictured his bunk empty.

He could feel the pressure on his heart for leaving without a trace like this, but he had already made up his mind days ago. It was getting too dangerous around the zoo now with Alice tracking him everywhere. Plus, he had unfinished business from the past to take care of.

Skipper turned, climbed the ladder, and opened the fishbowl hatch. He took in a long breath of the nighttime air. It was beginning to become cooler at night now, and the air was crisp and refreshing. He looked up to see a bright, clear sky and a full moon. A good night for traveling.

He pulled himself up on top of the fake ice floe and looked in the direction of Julien's habitat. It, of course, was all lit up with strands of party lights, no doubt hung by Mort and Maurice, and Skipper could hear the lemur's boom box blaring. Rico, Kowalski and Private were over there right now, getting settled in, and waiting for him to arrive. He felt his gut tie up a little bit. When he pictured Private's face when he never did.

It didn't look like many animals were at the party; Skipper could see many of them in their own habitats. Obviously Julien's reason for throwing a party was nowhere good enough to be a big hit among the other zoo animals. Skipper actually wondered why his team didn't question him about letting them go to the lemur's party. If there was one thing Skipper hated more than anything in the world, it was a party thrown by King Julien.

Skipper shook his head, smiling just a little bit at the memories that the thought brought to mind. He couldn't start reminiscing now though, otherwise he'd never be able to leave. Johnson had taught him that one.

He tossed his bag over the pool before swimming over and climbing out. He shook his feathers dry and put the backpack back on, then started down a path towards the zoo exit. It wasn't a long walk.

When he was about halfway there, he dug inside his pack for the EMP emitter. Sighing one last time, he pressed a red button on the side. The device whirred to life, causing a sharp pain to rush through his head, although it quickly subsided. He knew that the radar jammer was operational; there was no way that Alice would be able to track him now.

* * *

The phone rang, causing Alice to wake up so suddenly she fell out of her desk chair. She had fallen asleep in her office again, propped up against the wall with her feet on her desk. She rubbed her head while her vision cleared. A digital clock on her desk read twelve thirty AM.

It took her a moment to realize what had woken her up. She lunged for the phone out of frustration, picked it up and began shouting into it immediately.

"Hey! Do you have any idea what freakin' time it is? All I was trying to do was..."

"Alice?" said Mr. Green on the other end of the line, although Alice kept fuming.

"...and then you had to call and wake me up in the middle of the night, didn't you?" I mean..."

"Alice."

"...if this is a prank then it's not funny and I'll call the cops, I swear! I run a zoo..."

"Alice!"

"I have influence over what the police can and cannot... Wait, who is this?"

"Alice, it's Mr. Green." said the man on the other end, relieved that Alice finally stopped shouting. She continued to rub her head.

"This better be important. I think I have a concussion because of you."

"Sorry to have called you at such a late hour. I've been trying to get a hold of you for the last thirty minutes but you weren't at home, so I tried reaching you in your office."

"Thanks for that, Captain Obvious. Want to tell me how to spell my name next?"

Alice heard a sigh over the line.

"No, I'll pass. Although, I have called you to inform you of a important piece of information that turned up on your penguin monitors."

"Yeah?"

"Indeed. I have had a few of my employees keeping close eyes on the video feed at all times, and the have just alerted me to something amazing."

"Go on, blabbermouth." Alice said, annoyed.

"_Thank you_ for that, Alice. Now, it seems three of your penguins are currently partaking in some sort of animal party in your lemur habitat." Mr. Green explained.

"Huh?"

"Look outside your window at the lemur habitat, Alice."

Alice did as Mr. Green suggested. What she saw almost made her fall out of her chair again. It looked like one of her lemurs was dancing on top of the lookout rock, and there were lights everywhere. She rubbed her eyes, thinking she was hallucinating, but it was all still there.

"You say they're having a party?"

"Correct."

"How to animals have a party, Andy?"

Mr. Green sighed again.

"I don't know, but from what I have been seeing on the monitors they have been partaking in events similar to a human get together. They have been playing limbo, Alice."

Alice the spot she bumped one more time. "Are you sure you're not just on drugs and I'm seeing things because of this damn bump on my head?"

"Positive, Alice."

"Alright, I'm going over there right now with some nets to see what's going on. But wait, didn't you say there was only three penguins at that party?"

"Yes, I lost the signal on the fourth one," responded Mr. Green.

"What?" shouted Alice, "You're telling me that your multi-billion dollar prototype thing _lost the signal_?"

"Precisely."

Alice slapped her head and said, "Any clue why?"

"My experts say that the penguin activated some sort of electro-magnetic device that is currently disabling the circuits of the chip. The question is, where did a penguin get his hands on that technology and where did he learn to use it?"

"Yeah. And where did he get all those weapons I confiscated the other day?"  
"That is a question I can't answer as of yet. Although, I strongly recommend you be cautious when investigating that party. These penguins might be some sort of threat."

Alice was nearly rendered speechless at Mr. Green's words. How could penguins be a threat? They were penguins. Tiny, insignificant, worthless penguins. Flightless birds, for all she cared.

"Yeah right," she finally responded "I'll take my chances."

"Good luck, I'll be looking for you on my monitors," affirmed Mr. Green, and then hung up.

Alice chuckled at the idea that her penguins could be a threat. I mean, she always knew they were up to something, but never anything that could be dangerous to her or her zoo. Still, she poked around the zoo office building until she found the biggest net she could, and then carefully made her way into the night.

She walked for a short distance, eyes locked on the lemur habitat. She could still see the gray lemur on top of the rock formation, dancing very oddly to the music she was hearing. It almost made her want to laugh, but she was growing too tense. In fact, she was quite fond of the music that was playing and would have started dancing herself in any other situation.

She got to an intersection in a path between the Lemur's habitat and the penguin's ice floe. She stopped for a second and looked at the penguin's pool. She wished she could have been lucky enough to get _normal_ penguins that would just be swimming in circles all day like the dumb animals they were. They would eat fishcakes and not always toss them back at her, making her wonder what they were eating to survive. Those _normal_ penguins would still attract guests with their cuteness, but not randomly disappear at different times of the day.

It wasn't for a few moments that she noticed that there was a penguin sitting on top of the ice floe. From the moonlight and the faint, colorful light from the lemur habitat, she made it out to be a short penguin with a very flat head and a broad beak. She recognized it instantly as one of her four penguins, the one that always acted like a leader. He was just standing there, completely still, looking at the lemur's party.

She felt awkward for a moment, looking at a penguin that was frozen completely still, observing something else. Either way, she might have been lucky enough to bump into the one that was jamming it's GPS signal right off the bat. She walked over to the edge of the pool and reached in, using the long handle of the net to scoop up the penguin before it even knew what was coming.

She was confused at how the penguin didn't even fight back. There wasn't even the slightest amount of struggle. It just sat there, limp in her net. It didn't even look at her, but rather kept its eyes locked on the lemur habitat. She held the net up to her face for a closer look.

"Hey there buddy," she said, "where are you trying to run off to."  
The penguin slowly rotated its head towards her. She was starting to get a little scared.

"You're not acting normally. You'd usually be fighting me like crazy, wouldn't ya?" she said more to herself than the penguin.

When the penguin was looking directly at her, she noticed that one of its eyes was white, while the other was blue. The white eye was blind. Suddenly, she realized she wasn't holding one of her penguins, at least she thought she wasn't. Either way, it was too late.

Several things happened in a short period of time. The penguin she had in her net raised its flipper and then swiftly brought it down. At that exact moment Alice heard a pop and felt a sharp pain in her leg. She dropped the net and lost her balance because of the unexpected pain. She fell to the ground clutching where the pain was sharply climbing up her leg. She removed her hands from the spot to see a small puncture wound and a decent amount of blood on her hand that was holding the spot. Her breath escaped her.

Then, suddenly, the penguin that was in the net was on top of her. At least she thought it was the same penguin. In the pale moonlight and with her heart racing, though, she couldn't tell. She threw it off of her but it hopped right back on her. Or was it a different penguin. She didn't care. She threw that one off of her too, and then tried to stand. But unfortunately, the penguin she was fighting with had somehow already managed to tie her legs together and she quickly fell back down.

"Help!" she shouted at the top of her lungs, although she knew nobody would hear her. The penguin she threw off previously jumped on her again as she tried to crawl away. She tried to bat it away with her hand but it grabbed onto her wrist and pinned it against her chest.

Before she could move her other hand to try to throw the penguin off of her again, another penguin had grabbed it and pinned it to the ground. She struggled against the penguins. She knew they were not strong enough to hold her down forever, but unfortunately they began to squeeze her wrists right on the pressure points, so she lost most of her muscle strength in her arms.

"Oh my, God," was all she could say.

The penguin she had previously thought she was fighting with was actually still trapped under the net. She had been struggling with two different penguins entirely. A third penguin lifted up the net that he was trapped under and let the one-eyed penguin go. Alice couldn't help but notice the look of satisfaction on the penguin's face.

The penguin hopped up onto her shoulder and looked her dead in the eyes. At that moment, she suddenly realized that Mr. Green was right. If these penguins were her penguins, they were definitely a threat and had been plotting against her for a while. She wished she had brought something more than just a net to defend herself.

In a flash, the one-eyed penguin delivered a swift chop to a pressure point on her neck, and she blacked out.


	18. Moonlight

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 18 – Moonlight  
**

* * *

**"Help!"** **came a female voice over the sound of the music.**

Marlene thought at first that the voice was her own imagination, and she shook her head to dismiss it. It didn't seem like any of the other animals at the party noticed the sound. After all, Julien's boom box was propped up on his throne and was cranked to the max. Heck, with the crazy music Julien was playing, it could have been from the music.

Julien's party turned out to be a huge flop, but Marlene wasn't surprised. She knew the lemur king was just trying to draw out his "heroic deed" as long as he could, but none of the other animals in the zoo cared anymore or had cared for weeks. From what she could see, she noticed that only Private, Rico, and Kowalski came to the party besides herself. Of course, Mort and Maurice were being forced to dance over in one corner, but they unfortunately didn't have a choice. On the other hand, Julien was happily snapping his fingers to the music while resting on his lookout rock.

Marlene didn't quite know exactly why she was there, either. She had been angry with Julien after he blew off Private being in trouble, but she wasn't one to hold a grudge. Maybe she thought that there would be more animals or she would get a chance to converse with Skipper about leaving the zoo. She didn't quite know. But she did know that the party was becoming very boring, very quickly. She didn't know why she hadn't left already.

She decided to get up from where she was sitting in a corner of the lemur exhibit and walked over to the penguins. "What's up, guys?" she asked.

"Oh, Marlene," responded Kowalski, "I didn't know you were in attendance."

"Yeah, neither did I." She let out a chuckle. "Anyway, you guys don't look like you're having too much fun."

"No," said Private, "Well, not yet at least."

"What do you mean?" asked Marlene.

"_Skipper!_" grunted Rico, flailing his flippers like he was trying to fly.

"Indeed," said Kowalski, "we are waiting for Skipper to arrive. We expect him here shortly."

"Where is he?"  
The penguins looked at each other like they didn't know how to answer. Private spoke first. "Well, the Skippah said that he was going to do some quick recon. He told us to come here and he would meet us shortly."

"Oh, okay." said Marlene.

"But that was over an hour ago at this point." finished Kowalski.

Marlene looked around the habitat, as if Skipper was standing right behind her. "Well that stinks," she said, "but you don't need Skipper here to have fun, do you?"

"Well... no," mumbled Kowalski.

"Then lets go!" She began to walk towards a clearing underneath Julien's perched. She beckoned the penguins to follow and they did, although they were reluctant.

"Ah, so you did come to my party, Marlene!" Julien called when Marlene walked into the clearing.

"Yeah, but it doesn't look like anyone else did," Marlene called back, chuckling.

Julien crossed his arms defensively. "De guests have yet to show up." He turned his head behind him. "Don't they, Maurice?"

"Right, your majesty!" came the wide lemur's voice from where Marlene could not see.

"See, de king's parties are always popular, as is de king." Julien affirmed, turning his snout up. Marlene smiled and shook her head before turning back to the penguins.

"Alright, so do you guys know how to dance?" she asked them.

Kowalski answered, "Yes, Skipper has given us much training in the art of 'dancing.' At least, if your referring to what I think you are."

"Alright, let's see what you got." she told them, smiling.

Kowalski nodded, then the penguins lined up side by side. They crouched down into position, and then chopped, kicked and punched the air simultaneously. Then all three of them front flipped gracefully and landed perfectly in the same stance they began with.

Marlene shook her head. "No, I'm not talking about combat moves here. I'm talking about dance moves."

"I'm sorry Marlene," responded Private, "but when Skippah says 'let's dance', that's what it means."

Marlene couldn't help but laugh at that. It started as a low giggle but escalated into a full laugh.

"What?" Private said, "What's so funny?" Marlene only laughed harder.

She heard Rico's hoarse chortle pierce her own, and then Kowalski started chuckling too. Private only became more confused.

When the laughter subsided, Marlene said, "If that's dancing to you, then it's dancing to me too." She grinned happily.

Private smiled back, "Thanks! We've been practicing."

"_Dance!_" barked Rico, then lunged forward and began sliding on his belly excitedly.

"Rico's got the idea!" cheered Marlene.

"What's going on here?" came a different voice suddenly from behind the otter. In all of their hilarity, Marlene hadn't noticed another penguin join them. She turned around, and although he was standing in a shadow, she could make out Skipper's form.

"Skipper! Done with that 'recon'?" she said, playfully.

"What? Oh, yes." he said.

"Where'd you go, Skippah?" asked Private.

"Just went to go see what Alice was up to," he explained, "She was staying late tonight and it made me suspicious. I didn't want to ruin the night for you boys, though."

"Did you find anything?" Kowalski asked.

"Nothing out of the ordinary. She was just sleeping in her office."

"Enough of talk about military stuff," Marlene urged, "come out here and join the party."

"Unfortunately, Marlene," he said. When he said her name, she couldn't help but notice a shallow wave of fear roll over her. She shook it off. "I won't be joining the party tonight."

"What?" she responded, "Why not?"

"I've actually come to take the men back to HQ. The fact that Alice is still in the zoo this late makes this whole operation too risky. If Julien wants to get Alice suspicious of himself, that's fine, but she's already suspicious enough of us penguins already."

"Aw," sighed Marlene, "you're no fun."

"Sorry, Marlene, it's just too risky." She took the comment as consolidating, but then realized that it wasn't commonplace for an apology to come from Skipper, so this was either a blessing or a curse.

"Well I guess I'll see you later, then," she responded, waving to him. He had never left the cover of the shadow he was standing in.

The three penguins in the clearing offered their goodbyes to Marlene, and she back to them, and then the four penguins left. She looked up at Julien, who was looking down at her. When he realized she was looking back at him he pretended to be looking elsewhere. She wondered what had gotten into him recently.

Without the penguins there, it was just her and the lemurs. She thought about it for a moment, then concluded that it would be better to just go to her home than stay there. She turned to leave. Julien noticed and called after her.

"Where are you going, Marlene?" he asked, starting to hop down the rocks to get to her level.

"Nobody is here anymore, Julien. It's boring."

"But, but," he stuttered, "you haven't given de king a chance to get the party started." He looked around the habitat. "We need to do limbo, and dance, and do party games. De king is just waiting for more guests to get here."

"Julien," responded the otter, "you do realize that nobody else is coming, right?"

He stopped climbing down the rocks and look solumn-faced at the otter. "Yeah. De king was just trying to have a good time."

Skipper apologized, and now Julien admitted he was wrong. Marlene shook her head. What was next, were Phil and Rico going to start talking now?

"Anyway, see you later, Julien." The otter turned and began walking toward the lemur's tunnel entrance, waving her hand over her head as she walked.

As Marlene left, Julien sat down on a rock and rested his head in his hands. He wondered why he couldn't build up the courage to tell her how he really felt. Every time he came close, it seemed like he was only pushing her further away.

"Julien, can we stop dancing now please?" came Maurice's voice.

"No!" he barked, "Not until I say."

Yelling at Maurice only made him feel a little better. He wondered what Marlene was going to do that might be more fun then his dead party.

* * *

Marlene's habitat wasn't far away from the Lemur's and after rounding a few corners in the tunnel system she quickly came to the entrance of her home. She pushed open the trap door and emerged back into the chilly night air. She stood up, closed the door, and looked up at the night sky.

There was a full moon out. It outshined most of the stars. Well, she thought, the ones you could see over the New York city lights, anyway. The light it emitted illuminated her whole habitat, and it was even enough for the brick wall to cast long shadows on her pond. She looked down at the Penguin habitat, still thinking about her and Skipper's quick conversation, and then at the lemur habitat. She saw Maurice taking down the lights he had worked so hard to put up. Julien turned off his boom box, thus bathing her habitat in silence. The only noise she could hear was the traffic on a busy street on the other side of the park.

The silence and the mysterious moonlight combined to give her habitat a beauty she had never seen from it before. To her it had always been just a place to live. A blotch of green in a sea of gray. The moonlight and the silence transformed it, making it almost seem like a new place to her. She smiled, wondering why she hadn't noticed it this way before.

She began walking to the entrance of her cave, splashing her feet in the shallow part of her pool as she walked. She dragged her paw across the leaves of a bush as she passed. She froze when she thought she felt the bush move. She turned around. The air was completely still, so it could not have been the wind. It couldn't have been an air vent blowing on it either.

She walked up to the bush and put her hands on her hips. She could have sworn she felt it move, but maybe it had just been her imagination. She spread open the leaves, trying to figure out what could have made a stationary plant move like she had felt it. She almost had a heart attack when her eyes came to rest on the face of a penguin staring up at her from inside the small bush.

It had a rounded face, with a small pointed beak, sharp eyes and long, yellow feathers emerging from its eyebrows. She gasped and fell back from surprise and fright. The bush ruffled again, but she remain on the ground where she was.

"H-Hello?" she stuttered "Who are you?"

The bush, or rather the penguin inside, shifted uncomfortably. Marlene heard a quiet grunt. She stood up slowly and approached the bush again.

"Come out of there," she said, wondering if the penguin was as just as scared as she was. "I won't hurt you."

"Yeah, but _I'll _hurt_ you._" said a deep voice from behind her. She whipped around. There was another penguin now perched on a rock outside the entrance to her cave. She was sure it hadn't been there a moment before. This one was quite large with several gray feathers on its chest.

She suddenly became very scared. She let a loud scream escape her as her heart began to beat fast and she took a few steps back. She turned around, ready to bolt out of there, when the large penguin tackled her to the ground without warning.

She slid to the ground, feeling sharp pains in her legs and torso from the penguin's weight. She threw her arms in all directions, hoping to land a hit somewhere on the penguin's body. She did, but she knew she didn't do any damage. She wriggled and squirmed, but the penguin was much too strong for her and held her firmly to the ground of her habitat. She tried to scream again, but before she could, the penguin clamped his flipper over her mouth. The other, smaller penguin that had been hiding in the bush now was standing next to her with a length of rope coiled around his flipper. An intimidating, penguin-sized rifle hung at his side.

Marlene stopped struggling when she caught sight of the weapon. She had never seen anything like it before in her life, yet she knew the power that it held. She knew the struggle was over. The only thing she could hope for was that Julien or the penguins had heard her scream.

* * *

**~(Author's Note)~ **Thanks so much to all your readers for following my story and reviewing. Specifically I'd like to thank ggreen7295, halfhuman123, and minimewtwo for thier loyal feedback. Just to put it into perspective, I write for only two reasons. One, because I enjoy it, and two, because I enjoy your feedback! So please review, it only takes a moment of your time and I'd really love to hear what you think.

Forewarning, I promised I'd be updating every Monday; that has been changed to Sunday night. I may not be able to post a new chapter next Sunday as I'm quite busy this week, so you may be able to expect a double update the week after. Again, thanks for reading and check back soon!


	19. Sarge

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 19 – Sarge**

* * *

**Blackness.**

Through her cracked eyelids, Marlene could only see the endless black void created by the blindfold over her face. She felt confused at first; nearly nauseous as she tried to figure which way was up. She wriggled her arms only to find out that they were bound behind her back. As her mind cleared she could tell that she was sitting propped up against a wall, although she had no idea where she could be. She attempted to take in a whiff of air to see if she could take in any familiar scents, but when she did all that she could smell was what she thought was sweat and grease. There was a filthy rag stuffed in her mouth.

She squirmed, opened her mouth as wide as she could and managed to spit the cloth out. She took a deep breath of air, relieved that her mouth was not taped shut. With the rag gone, her nose was now greeted by an even more putrid smell; she was in the sewer. With her mind clear, she could now hear some water flowing nearby.

What was she doing in the sewer? Marlene struggled with her restraints one more time before her memories came flooding back. When she returned to her habitat, she encountered two penguins. She had screamed for help and fought back with all of her might, but they were too strong for her. The last thing she had remembered was a sharp pain in the back of her head; one of the penguins must have bludgeoned her with a rock.

The sound of the flowing water began to grow more quiet. The water level was falling, she thought. She wondered if she was in risk of drowning if it went high enough. Maybe that was the reason she was down here?

Suddenly, she realized she was not alone. The sound of flowing water had been replaced by another sound. This one was a steady, slow breathing. She held her own breath. To her, it sounded like someone large was sleeping nearby.

"Roger?" she said, thinking the sewer alligator was the only other possible thing that could be down here.

It sounded like there was a gasp, and then a deep voice said, "Good, you're finally awake." Marlene's heart sank when she recognized it as the larger penguin that had attacked her. "Sarge was worried that I hit you too hard and killed you. I didn't mean to, because he needs you alive and all, but you were just too frisky for my tastes." The penguin laughed.

Marlene struggled against her restrains again. She was beginning to feel a little claustrophobic. Her heart rate sped up.

"You just sit tight, princess, and I'll go get Sarge." The penguin assured. Marlene heard footsteps going away from her. She could picture the smirk on the gray-chested penguin's face.

The otter's mind was going at a million miles per minute. She wondered who this 'Sarge' was. She wondered what the penguins wanted with her, down in the sewers. She wondered if these penguins were connected to her previous attacker. Even though these questions were buzzing around her mind, she couldn't suppress a rising feeling of panic inside of her.

Marlene now heard some footprints coming closer to her, except these were much softer, faster, and coming from the opposite direction as the ones before.

"W-who's there?" She stuttered. She was starting to shake from fear.

A hand touched her shoulder. The otter's heart skipped a beat and she opened her mouth to scream, but another hand clamped over her mouth before she could. She heard someone shushing her and she calmed down.

"Marlene," said a familiar voice, "It's me, King Julien."

"Oh, thank goodness." She responded as the lemur removed her blindfold. She didn't think she had ever been more happy to see Julien's stuck up face.

The area around was very dark, and although Marlene possessed exceptional night vision, she could barely make out her surroundings. She was definitely in the sewer, though.

"Quick, untie me," instructed Marlene with a whisper. Julien nodded and began fumbling with the rope behind Marlene's back.

Suddenly Marlene heard several pairs of footsteps coming up to corridor to her right. Her heart sped up again. Julien froze when he heard the noise, his head whipping around frantically.

"Julien!" urged Marlene, but the lemur king abandoned the ropes and dove behind a pile of rubble only seconds before three penguins rounded a nearby corner.

Right away, Marlene recognized one of the penguins. She had thought it was Skipper with a glance, but she realized it wasn't. Standing in the middle was the same penguin that attacked her weeks ago; she would never forget that face. She shivered at what he had said to her.

_" I have a highly trained force of over one hundred men who are just outside the city. On my word, they will storm this place and burn it to the ground."_

The penguin to his right was the deep-voiced one that had tackled her in front of her habitat. His chest, complete with gray feathers, was puffed out and he was beaming at her, probably because he just received some sort of praise. Marlene thought that the penguin he had referred to as 'Sarge' was the flat-headed penguin that looked like Skipper.

The penguin on the other side of Sarge was the smaller, grim-faced penguin with the long, orange feathers on his brow. Marlene had seen pictures of penguins like him in pictures around the zoo, and now recognized him as a rock-hopper penguin. She had stumbled upon him when he was in the bushes outside of her habitat. He was now holding his rifle. Marlene felt a wave of fear wash over her when she caught a glance of it.

"Oi, how'd you get your blindfold off, princess?" said the deep-voiced penguin when they had gotten closer to the otter. He walked over to her and attempted to put it back on, but Sarge's voice stopped him.

"That won't be necessary, Thurgo," he said, smoothly, "She's already seen what we look like."

Thurgo rubbed the back of his head and smiled guiltily. "Uh, sorry, Sarge."

Sarge directed his attention to Marlene. She flinched when his icy stare made contact with hers.

"So, we meet again."

Marlene was speechless. Scared stiff, she thought.

"I told you I'd be back with reinforcements, didn't I? You obviously hadn't prepared for the occasion." Marlene suddenly wished that she hadn't blown the threat of his return off at the Zooviner meeting.

"Anyway, the only reason you're still alive is because you have information, and I want it."

Marlene opened her mouth to speak, but she suddenly felt like she had forgotten how to talk. She closed it again, glancing at the rifle held by the rock-hopper.

"So I'll kindly ask you again." Marlene felt like his gaze was staring deep into her conscious. "Where is Skipper?"

"What?" she said, finally finding her voice.

Sarge shook his head. "Don't play stupid."

"I-I... don't know..." she responded, wondering why these penguins were so intent on getting the information out of her.

"I said, _don't play stupid._" said Sarge, with more authority than before. The rock-hopper penguin cocked the rifle, causing Marlene to gasp from fear.

"No, r-really, I don't know," Marlene pleaded. Figuring it was a bad time to lie, she told them what she knew. "Skipper d-disappeared sometime earlier today. He was here last n-night, and he wasn't at the party. That's all I know, okay?"

Sarge rubbed his chin. "Geir, if you would do the honors."

The rock-hopper penguin, called Geir, nodded and raised the butt of his rifle to his shoulder, sighting it directly at Marlene. Marlene gasped again, eyes swiftly bouncing back and forth between the gun and the penguin leader next to it.

"I'm not playing with you, otter. Where is Skipper?"

"I-I'm not lying, I swear!" pleaded Marlene.

She heard her own voice quaver with fear and could feel herself shaking. The thought that she might die right there crossed her mind. She pictured the loud crack of the gun being fired, the sound echoing all over the sewers. She envisioned the pointed metal slug traveling through her soft skull and implanting itself in her flesh. She shook her head quickly, trying to get a hold of her senses. She wondered if Julien was still behind that pile of rubble. She _hoped_ Julien was behind that pile of rubble. He was her only hope.

"What do you w-want with Skipper, anyway?" she asked, unsure of what else to say. She heard Thurgo laugh. He had sat down on a pile of concrete not far from where Julien was hidden. Marlene prayed that he wouldn't look too far to his right.

Sarge huffed. "Skipper and I have some unfinished business, if you must know."

"Then how did I get mixed up in it? Why didn't you just ask one of Skipper's men where he was? Speaking of which, didn't you lead them away at the party? Where are they?" Marlene wondered why she suddenly had the courage to ask so many questions.

"The answers to your questions are not important. I'll just say that the other penguins were not any more cooperative in relaying to me Skipper's location than you are. So, they've been... dealt with."

Geir, who was still pointing the rifle at Marlene, smirked slightly. Marlene's heart sank. Had this crazy penguin really killed Private, Kowalski, and Rico? She didn't want to believe it. She tried to keep her mind focused, but she couldn't help the sudden, overwhelming wave of grief.

"No... you monster." she said softly.

"Ha-ha," Thurgo mocked, "we've heard that one before."

"You've got one more try, Marlene," Sarge said, grimly, "Three strikes and you're out. Where is Skipper?"

Marlene opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again. She couldn't just say 'I don't know.' She didn't know what to do. She knew her life was relying on the answer of this one question that she didn't know the answer to.

"S-Skipper's dead." She felt stupid, but she knew it was the only possible way of stalling these penguins any further.

"Oh?" wondered Sarge.

"Yep. He d-died a few months back. _Really_ bad sickness, poor penguin. The vets did everything they could to save him, b-but he just died. Poof. Kablooey. Bye-bye Skipper."

"You're lying through your teeth."

"No it's true. The other penguins don't know about Skipper because they got here only shortly before he died. They were his replacement."

Sarge rubbed his beak thoughtfully.

"But, Sarge!" said Thurgo. "If Skipper's dead everything we've worked for will be nothing! How'll we find the Sun?"

"Huh?" Marlene asked. "What sun? The sun in the sky?"

"Shut up, Thurgo." Sarge scolded, ignoring Marlene's questions. "Skipper is not dead. But I see that the otter really does not know where he is. It is easy to tell when someone is lying when they tell an obvious lie like that load of garbage. She was not lieing about not knowing where he is."

"Alright, so what should we do with her?" Thurgo asked. "I want to toss her into the sewer water for causing us so much trouble."

"That will not be necessary," Sarge assured.

"Why, do you want to waste a bullet on her?"

Sarge thought for a second before responding. Marlene knew her life hung in the balance. Finally, the penguin leader spoke.

"No." Geir finally lowered the rifle. Marlene sighed with relief. "That will not be necessary either."

"What, have you gone soft, Sarge?" said Thurgo.

Suddenly, Sarge whipped around quickly, charged at the larger penguin sitting not far from him and slammed a balled flipper into the side of of the penguin's face. The impact was enough for the penguin to go flying several feet and almost slide right into the river of sludge.

"Don't _ever_ question my authority, private. _Everything_ I do has a purpose, do you understand?"

Thurgo rubbed the side of his face, eyes bulging with surprise. "Y-yes, sir." he said meekly.

Sarge turned back to Marlene. His flippers were still clenched into fists and his glare radiated anger, enough to make Marlene scared once more. "When you see Skipper, you will relay to him these words."

The penguin paused. Marlene held her breath.

"The Sun will rise again."

Sarge turned to leave, closely followed by Geir, still holding his rifle. Thurgo sulked behind the two, rubbing his face. Marlene watched them walk further and further away, until they rounded a corner in the sewer and she could no longer hear their footsteps.

* * *

"Alright, Julien. They're gone," Marlene said to the pile of rubble she assumed Julien was still hiding behind. A few long seconds passed, but there was no response. "Julien?" she asked the darkness. Nothing but the sound of flowing water answered her.

She awkwardly stood up, realizing that only her hands were bound. She walked over to the rubble and peered over it. Julien was nowhere to be found. All that existed where he was hiding was a decent sized crack in the sewer wall.

A crack just big enough for a lemur to squeeze through.

Julien had abandoned her. She cursed the lemur king under breath. She could have gotten shot, for God's sake! But he just abandoned her.

She shook her head. She would have to deal with that thing another time. Right now, all she knew was that she was lost in the sewers, had some important information that needed spreading, and had no clue if three of her best friends were even still alive. Her mind began racing again, but she tried her best to calm it down.

For now, she just needed to find her way out of this Godforsaken sewer.

* * *

**~(Author's Note)~** Looks like I was able to write a chapter after all. As always, thanks for all the great reviews, and keep reviewing! I'm getting a lot of complements on my writing, but I'd love some constructive critisim as well!


	20. Reunion

Skipper's Log. 02:00 hours on August the fifteenth.

_"Manfredi came into our room earlier tonight after being missing for the majority of the past week. He gave us the heads up on what our mission is going to be from about two weeks from now. It's odd of him to do that, because us soldiers have been kept in the dark for the most part since we first heard about us going into combat. I don't know if he could get into trouble for what he told us, but it is most likely that he will if he gets caught. Disclosing classified information to unauthorized personnel is an offense worthy of the firing line, apparently._

_"What he explained to us was not what I was expecting, however. At the end of the month we're all going to stow away on a British science vessel headed to Antarctica to do research. There we're going to infiltrate a penguin colony that, according to Manfredi's superiors, is aiming a weapon of mass destruction directly at us. _

_"What _weapon of mass destruction _he means, I haven't the slightest clue. I have heard stories of the humans creating weapons powerful enough to destroy entire cities in a matter of seconds. I'm pretty sure they were called nukes or something. But fish and chips, entire cities! _

_"I couldn't help but notice how shaken up Manfredi was. He looks like he hasn't slept in ages, and based on his bloodshot eyes and short temper that very well might be true. I remember him mentioning something about being from Antarctica on the way over here when we were stuffed up into that crate. I can't recall what connections he had, but an assault on his homeland is something to be upset about. I'm going to try to bring it up next time we speak, if we even speak before we head out to England. I will need to be careful about it though, I would rather not get put on the firing line if said information is classified. Or get Manfredi put on the firing line for that matter. _

_"Either way, I have a feeling something is not right."_

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 20 - Reunion**

**AT THAT MOMENT, HE HELD ALL OF THE CARDS AND NONE OF THEM AT ALL. **

He held the other penguin's life in his hands, like a hand of cards. He held the dagger in his flipper. The other penguin was defenseless; unconscious. He held all of the cards. And yet, the penguin was innocent. He had once been very close to that penguin, and he had done nothing to deserve death. For this reason, Manfredi held none of the cards at all.

He sat in the corner of a dark alcove created by two dumpsters and a plain brick wall. It was the kind of place nobody would ever think to look in. The concrete he now sat on had probably not been seen by anyone else for several years. A forgotten place, he thought, but yet so valuable to him.

It was here, in this alleyway, he had murdered a poor, innocent pigeon only a month ago. The pigeon had probably been a brother, a husband; a father. He had let his rage for his target consume him and he unleashed it. He was a heartless murderer, he had convinced himself. That was okay, though, because he had already lost his heart ages ago when he let his loved ones die.

A thin sliver of moonlight fell across his face, glinting off the cold, metal plates that covered the side of his head. The light illuminated his flipper, silently twirling the twisted, metal dagger. He didn't look at it, though; it was much too familiar to him. His eyes were focused on the huddled mass of feathers sprawled out on the cold concrete opposite him in the alcove. The sliver of moonlight fell on this body, too.

Manfredi had spent all of his time since Johnson's death tracking down the penguin that lay now on the ground in front of him. He had spent much too time to just accept that he had been on the trail of the wrong penguin this whole time. In searching for an enemy had found a friend. He had no reason to kill the penguin on the ground. He had no reason to kill him when he had his chance while they were struggling in the bunker. Manfredi had fled that place after he had realized he was looking into the eyes of Skipper, his old teammate. He was trying to forget the past—not return to it.

After he had fled the bunker he had aimlessly wandered around the city, searching for any clue that would lead him to his true target. The one that had killed Johnson and had duped Skipper and himself into believing they were 'valiant soldiers' when they were actually just being turned into murderers. Murderers that would do anything to please their corrupt leaders.

He had seen Skipper wandering up an abandoned street only a few hours ago. Manfredi had been curled up in a decent sized hole in the wall of a crumbling building when Skipper walked by. Even though the leader penguin seemed to be distracted, he checked over his shoulder every three seconds. Even though, Manfredi had not been noticed. Thinking he had seen his target, Manfredi had not wasted a second and charged Skipper, pummeling him to the ground. The penguin had not fought back when Manfredi slammed him unconscious. Manfredi was proud for a moment—but when he realized that he had just attacked Skipper and not his target, he panicked.

The robot penguin dragged Skipper into the nearest alleyway he could find. Ironically, after noticing a familiar bloodstain on the concrete, he realized it was the same alleyway he had killed the pigeon in. A cold shiver ran down his spine, but he continued to drag Skipper into a dark corner.

So now he said, moonlight glinting off his metal plates as well as the twisted dagger in his hands. Many memories came to him as he sat there staring at Skipper, sprawled out in the corner just as Manfredi had left him. He remembered the first time he had met Skipper, and Johnson for that matter, cramped into a little cargo box on some plane to Denmark. He was young then, he thought, and now he was old. Before the only death he had seen was his uncle Fredrick being pulled under the ice by a lion seal. He remembered how the red water bubbled to the surface moments later. Now, as an old penguin, he had seen, and caused, much more death. More blood in the water, he thought.

He remembered constructing a bunker on the outskirts of the military base with Skipper. Johnson was forced to clean dishes at that time. He recalled filling it with fish with Skipper and Johnson after learning that it was actually a giant ice box. He remembered smuggling some of those fish into their room with Skipper when fish rations were decreased. He remembered getting promoted to Corporal, how proud he was on that day. Corporal Manfredi. It was a fitting title, he thought at the time. He remembered learning about the Penguin Army's true plans, about their leader Dr. Blowhole, and about his Sargent Major's dark secrets. He remembered teaming up with Skipper and Johnson and trying everything in their power to stop the invasion of Antarctica...

He winced as though someone had just jabbed him in the chest. Those were painful memories to dig up. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain originating from his flipper; he had accidentally cut himself with the twisted dagger.

Before he could reminisce any longer, though, the penguin laying across from him began to stir.

Manfredi wasn't sure what to do. Should he knock Skipper back out in case Skipper tried to run? Should he just let him run? Why would Skipper want to run? Why was he afraid of Skipper running? Was it because he was afraid to let anything else close to him go? He shook his head, remembering that he had already bound Skipper to the nearby dumpster.

Skipper slowly opened his eyes and pushed himself up on his flippers. His vision was blurry and he felt disorientated. He rolled himself over onto his back and rubbed his face with his flippers. It wasn't for a full minute that he noticed the half-metal, half-feathered face staring back at him. Skipper made no reaction as he remembered what had occurred earlier in the night. It was only the two unreadable facades looking at each other, not a hint of emotion from either of them.

"Manfredi," Skipper said under his breath, "fish and chips, man, it's really you."

The penguin across from didn't react. Skipper attempted to stand up, only to realize his foot was tied tightly to the base of a dumpster. Some silence passed.

"Why did you attack me?" Skipper finally asked. "Twice?" he added.

Manfredi waited a few moments before responding. He spoke with a deep, slow tone of voice, yet very steady. "For Johnson," he said simply.

"What do you mean 'For Johnson'? Why would Johnson want you to attack me?" Skipper responded calmly.

"I did not want to attack you, Skipper."

"But you did?"

"Let me explain. Twice now I have mistaken you for someone else. My true target, the one who took the lives of Johnson, my child, and" he seemed to cringe, "Sarah, is in this city somewhere. Our paths have merely crossed... somewhat inconveniently."

Skipper gave this a thought. "So, Johnson is gone?"

"Yes."

"How did he die?"

Manfredi held up the crooked dagger that he had been toying with, Skipper failing to notice it before. It reflected some moonlight into Skipper's eyes and made him squint. "He was stabbed in the back with this. Right in front of me."

Skipper's eyes grew wide. "You almost stabbed me with that dagger the other night..."

"Yes, I know. I am saving it for my target. There is not a more proper death for him other than to be stabbed with his own weapon."

"And you thought I was your target..."

Manfredi nodded.

"You thought I was your target when you knocked me out, too?"

Another nod.

"How do you keep confusing me for your target so much? Who is your target anyway? Who killed Johnson?" Skipper asked.

"I am not sure if you remember our Sargent Major. He was a shorter fellow that looked kind of like you. Went by the name of Sarge."

Skipper rubbed his beak in thought. "Yes, I do remember." he said as faint memories came back to him. "although my memory is failing me."

"Back in Denmark we always used to mention how he looked just like you, do you remember that?"

"Yeah, sort of," Skipper responded

"Over the past few years Sarge has grown to look more and more like you, whether it is natural or he is modifying his own appearance, I do not know."

"So our old Sargent major was the one who killed Johnson," Skipper said to himself, then asked, "How in the seven seas did you get into that situation?"  
Manfredi closed his eyes, leaned back, and let out a tired sigh. "You ask many questions, Skipper."

Skipper arched a brow. "Yeah?"

"You fail to notice that I may have some of my own."

"Oh. Well, ask away I guess."

Manfredi nodded. "What are you doing in a zoo? You told me once that you rather die then be held in one of those prisons."

Skipper thought for a minute before responding. "Well, after you ran into that crumbing building all those years ago... I mean, you remember that, right?" Manfredi offered an understanding nod. "Yeah, after that I was not sure where to go. I became lost. I hopped boats, planes, cars; anything I could find. I had no idea where I was going. Eventually I found myself in New York and I blacked out from hunger. Next thing I remember I woke up in a zoo with a bowl full of fish. Times change, I guess."

Manfredi facial expression didn't change at Skipper's story. Skipper couldn't help but feel like that was the story he was expecting.

"When I was in your... habitat... There were three other penguins with you. They were organized like soldiers. Why?" Manfredi asked, continuing to finger the dagger without removing his eyes from Skipper.

"Well, uh," Skipper didn't know why he felt uncomfortable all of the sudden. The rope around his foot seemed to grow tighter. "Those are my... cell mates." he let out an awkward chuckle.

"Yes, I understand. Though that doesn't explain why they are organized like a military operation. You had them lined up like they were on role call."

Skipper's heart beat a little faster. Damn it, why did Manfredi, even after all these years, still have the ability to make him feel this uncomfortable. "Old habits die hard, I guess," he said simply, shrugging his shoulders.

Manfredi nodded. Skipper felt relieved that he understood.

"Besides, we've been in many situations where having teammates trained as well as soldiers has come in handy."

\ "Oh?"

"Yeah, like that one time, actually two times, we had to fight this mutated rat creature from the sewers. That was intense. Then there was the time we had to track down a raccoon who was stealing all our stuff from the zoo, and the other time our friend went crazy and we had to capture her."

As Skipper talked Manfredi's expression did not change. The strange events that he was talking about would normally cause the other person to ask more questions, but Manfredi did not.

A few moments of silence passed between the two, broken only by a far off police siren. "So, Manfredi," Skipper started, "Why am I tied to this dumpster? I can't even get up."

Manfredi sighed and looked at the ground. The action made him look very tired, almost like an old man. He slowly got up from his box and waddled over to Skipper. Suddenly, he gripped the handle of the dagger tightly and swung his flipper though the air. Skipper flinched, thinking for a second that twisted blade of the dagger might be directed at him. He opened his eyes to see Manfredi with his back turned to him, the robe that was binding his foot to the dumpster cleanly slashed apart. He removed the remains of the rope from his foot and then stood, brushing off his feathers.

"I need your help, Skipper." Manfredi said, sounding very tired.

* * *

**/AN:** What can I say, it has been a while. Enjoyed writing again, though, may get back into it. Please review if you enjoyed this chapter! **:AN\**


	21. Missing

****

The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 21 – Missing

**MARLENE WALKED DOWN THE DARK PASSAGEWAY OF THE SEWER.**

Only faint light come in from grates and cracks in the ceiling to guide her way. She figured it was from the moon or overhead streetlights. Marlene used her night vision to make out which way to go, cracks in the ground to avoid, and any possible threats. The otter breathed heavily; she had started off at a run but now she grew tired and slowed her pace to a walk.

She was thankful that she knew the sewers so well from her trips down here with the penguins. She knew exactly where she was going and where she would end up. She was headed for the first place she thought of going: the penguin's HQ. After Sarge and his henchmen told her that they had been 'dealt with' she became frightened that they might be dead. The thought of seeing Private, Kowalski and Rico lifeless on the floor made her stomach turn and almost made her not want to go to the HQ. After all, she knew that the penguins had been fooled by Sarge and followed him back to the Headquarters where they were presumably ambushed. She had no clue where Skipper was, for that matter. She hadn't seen him since the night before the party. She worried that maybe Sarge's henchmen got a hold of him. She wondered if maybe he'd gotten away. Sarge was still asking where Skipper was after he'd captured her, so that seemed like the more likely answer. The otter continued on through the sewer. praying with every breath that the penguins were unharmed. As she was walking she found a sharp piece of rebar sticking out of the concrete, and after rubbing the rope that bound her hands together on it for some time she managed to free her hands, although the ends of the rope were still tightly tied around her wrists.

The otter continued walking. She had no idea where Sarge and his lackeys were, and for this reason she periodically checked over her shoulder. She didn't think that they would be following her, at least she couldn't think of a reason. Better safe than sorry, she thought. It was quiet down in the tunnels, the only sounds she could hear were the flowing of the thick water beside her and the occasional squeak of a sewer rat. The only thing Marlene was listening to though was the sound of her own thoughts. She continued replaying Sarge's words in her mind, the words she was to tell Skipper, where ever he may be.

_The Sun will rise again._

What could those words mean? Was he talking about the literal sun? No he couldn't, thought Marlene, that would be silly. The sun rises every day, of course it will rise again. He must have been talking about some sort of hypothetical sun, she thought. Maybe he was referring to himself? Maybe he was some sort of fallen leader and he was attempting to get back on top? The possibilities were endless for such a vague statement. Eventually, Marlene just gave up on trying to figure it out and decided to wait to ask Skipper, provided he was still alive. Marlene gulped down her fear.

The otter reached an access drain that went from the sewer to the Zoo's tunnel system. She paused for a second before continuing, though. She had no idea what time it was. She presumed she had been knocked out for only a few hours because of the moonlight still coming in through the sewer grates, but she had no idea if it was nearing morning. It could be nearing time to open and employees would be using the tunnel system. She didn't want to get caught down there, so she peered into the passageway before continuing. Not a soul in sight, so she figured it was still too early and continued on.

It was a short walk to the entrance of the Penguin's HQ. It was a porthole-style door about as big as person that the zoo keepers used to access the inside of the penguin's HQ, but they didn't often. Marlene reached out and pushed the door open a crack, but then froze. There were no sounds coming from the inside of the concrete structure. Fearing the worst, she couldn't stop herself from hyperventilating. She tensed up as she pushed the door open a little further. It wasn't until she heard a familiar voice come from inside that she calmed down.

"If only I could reach a little further... Gah! It's not worth it!" came a deep voice that could only be Kowalski's.

"_Aww..._" growled Rico.

"C'mon K'walski, you've got to try harder." ushered Private. "If we can't get these ropes undone then we're done for!"

"I've tried, Private, for the last _four hours_!" shot back Kowalski, obviously becoming frustrated.

Excited to hear all three penguin's voices, Marlene flung open the hatch door, making the three penguins jump. Marlene scanned the room, noting all three penguins tied to something. Kowalski's foot was was tied to the ladder beside the penguins' bunks, and he was flat on his stomach, reaching for a small fillet knife that was only inches out of his reach. Rico and Private were both fastened to the ladder that lead up to the fishbowl entrance. All three penguins looked like they had been in a fight; their feathers were ruffled.

"Marlene!" Private shouted, surprised.

"_Huzzah!_" yelled Rico.

"You don't know how happy we are to see you right now, Marlene." Kowalski said.

"Same to you guys," returned the otter, relieved. "What happened here?" She asked, walking over and picking up the knife.

"It's a long story," Kowalski began. "We followed the penguin that we presumed was Skipper at the party and he led us back to the headquarters."

"Didn't you notice anything strange about him? I mean, that he wasn't really Skipper?" asked Marlene, beginning to cut at the rope that secured Kowalski's foot to the ladder.

"He looked quite a bit like Skippah," answered Private, "And it was awfully dark out."

"I noticed that he was acting strangely when we got closer to the headquarters, and based on Skipper's strange behavior over the last week I concluded Skipper was merely tired." Kowalski said, rubbing the spot where the rope had been on his ankle. Marlene continued to free Private and Rico. Kowalski continued, "When we reached the light of the HQ and the impostor turned to face us, it became clear that he was not Skipper."

"At that time he yelled, 'Now!' and two penguins jumped out of the dark and tackled myself and Rico." told Private. Rico growled, rubbing his wrists. "We put up a bloody good fight, but they had the advantage of surprise. The smaller of the two also had some sort of," Private shivered, "rifle, or something."

"He almost shot Private, but I barely succeeded in throwing off his aim," Kowalski pointed at the porthole window, which was cracked and slowly leaking. "But then the Skipper impostor tackled me and tied my foot to that ladder."

"Yeah, and then tha' Skippah look-alike yelled at the penguin with the rifle for shooting at me while he was still holding me. While they were distracted Rico managed to break away from the larger of the two henchmen." continued Private. Rico made a motion of biting something.

"Rico began to attack their leader, but the larger henchmen recovered and slammed Rico into a wall. Rico proceeded to loose consciousness from the blow." said Kowalski. Rico made the action of passing out.

"I struggled and I think I even got a few hits on the little one that was holding me, but they tied me and Rico to th' other ladder." explained Private.

"What happened after that? I left the party shortly after you guys did, and I was ambushed in my habitat. So there couldn't have been much time between when you were attacked and when I was. They must have moved quickly." said Marlene.

"You were attacked, too?" both Private and Kowalski asked, surprised.

Marlene held up the rope that was still tied around her wrists and then began cutting it off.

"What happened?" Kowalski questioned.

Marlene continued to tell them all that she had found out while she was being held hostage. She continued in telling the penguins what Sarge had said to her. She finished by adding that Sarge was the same penguin who had attacked her in her habitat a few weeks ago.

"So the lil' one was Gier, the fat one was Thurgo, and their leader was Sarge?" Private summed up.

Marlene nodded.

"'The Sun will rise again.'" Kowalski repeated to himself. "What could it mean?"  
"I have no idea," responded Marlene. "The sun rises every day."

"He must have been referring to some other type of sun." wondered the intellectual penguin.

"That's just what I was thinking, but what?" returned the otter.

A few moments of silence passed between the group before Private said, "I'm sure the Skippah will know, after all, you are supposed to tell him."

"That means that Skipper and this Sarge are connected somehow," observed Marlene.

"I already concluded that," returned Kowalski. "After those penguins tied us all up they asked us a few questions, mostly about Skipper."

"We didn't tell them anything, though." added Private.

Kowalski said, "The one you say is Sarge got frustrated and slapped me a few times." The tall penguin rubbed the side of his face, "but eventually they ran out saying they had some other business to attend to. I had no idea they were coming after you, Marlene."

"Why would they be after you, anyway?" asked Private.

"I have no clue," responded the otter, "but I guess they think that I'm somehow more closely connected to Skipper then you guys."

"That makes no sense," wondered the intellectual, "Perhaps they were misinformed?"

"Not sure," said Marlene, "but lets just go with what we do know. We have no idea where Skipper is, where this Sarge is hiding out, or why he's after Skipper. This Sarge penguin is well armed with two henchmen, and he could pop out at any moment and attack us or Skipper again."

"We need to find Skippah," concluded Private, "but where did he go?"

"Perhaps he fled the scene after he noticed there was a threat?" wondered Kowalski. "Although he never did show up at Julien's party."

The penguins fell silent for a while while they thought of where Skipper could have possibly went. A few moments later, a familiar voice finally cut in.

"De king knows what happened to your fishy penguin." said King Julien, standing in the open doorway. Maurice and Mort were standing near him. Marlene offered him a penetrating glare as soon as she laid eyes on him. Noticing, he added an awkward, "Uh, hi, Marlene."

"What happened here?" said the darker lemur, Maurice, looking around the ruined HQ.

Kowalski explained the story to the lemurs as he had told Marlene. All the while, the otter glared at the lemur king standing across from her.

"Julien," she finally said when Kowalski finished the story, "why did you leave me?"  
"I, uh," he began awkwardly. "De king, was, uh, scared of de fishy penguins in de sewer. I was outnumbered and had to get, uh, backup!" Julien patted Maurice on the shoulder.

"We went down to the sewer to come help you, but you were already gone when we got there." explained Maurice.

"I was scared for you," added Mort, curling his tail around him.

Marlene nodded in understanding. "Sorry for getting upset at you Julien, I thought you just abandoned me to save your own hide."

Julien waved a dismissive hand. "So do you want to hear what happened to your fishy penguin or not?"

All three penguins and Marlene nodded.

"Well," began the lemur king, "You see, the night before my party I came to talk to de penguin and I caught him trying to run away."

All three penguin's eyes grew wide. "What?" gasped Private, "Why?"

"De king does not know, de fishy penguin would not tell me. But de king does know that I stopped him from leaving that night. Skipper said he wanted to stay for de king's party."

Kowalski rubbed his beak. "So he must have used the cover of the party to slip away sometime last night."

"Is it just a coincidence that we got attacked by that rouge penguin on the same night?" Marlene asked.  
"I don't know," Maurice said.

Marlene began pacing the room. "Why did Skipper leave? Or why would he want to leave?"

The tall penguin thought for a minute, and then said, "I have a theory."

"What?" said Marlene.

"We were attacked by a penguin, or at least we thought it was a penguin, some days ago. Now, it wasn't the same penguin that attacked us last night, but it invaded our HQ and almost stabbed Skipper, and then ran off. Skipper mentioned something about recognizing the penguin and that he wasn't worried about it attacking us again. Perhaps he ran off to go find that penguin? It seemed like it was an old friend of Skipper's."

"Why wouldn't the Skippah tell us?" Private wondered. "I would have went with him to help him find his old friend."

"That is precisely why he didn't," explained Kowalski, "He didn't want us to come with him. Skipper is someone who likes to deal with his own problems by himself."

Maurice shook his head. "This whole situation is getting out of hand."

"Especially what happened to Alice!" said Mort.

"That's right, Mort, thanks for reminding me." the wide lemur returned. "On our way back from the sewers we found Alice unconscious in the middle of a zoo path."

"So this penguin Sarge even attacked a human?" Private wondered.

"That seems to be the case," returned Kowalski. "These penguins aren't even afraid of people."

"Then we've got a serious problem on our hands." Marlene said, still pacing.  
Private sighed. "I can't believe Skippah would just leave us without even saying goodbye. Now we have no way of even knowing where he is."

Suddenly, Rico yelped and shivered as electricity coursed down his spine.

"Maybe we do," explained Kowalski. All the other animals in the room directed their attention at him. "There were GPS tracking chips embedded in us recently. If we can find the device that shows were each of the locations of the chips are, we will be able to identify where Skipper is located."

"Where do you think something like that would be K'walski?" asked Private.  
"Assuming the whole operation is run by Alice, it would be in her office."

"Well then it's settled, we've got to get that device." concluded Marlene, who had stopped pacing. She looked at the lemurs. "Can you guys come with us in case we need your help?"

"With one less fishy penguin around it smells so much nicer. Do you think de king would help you bring the smell back?" Julien said to Marlene, who frowned. Realizing his mistake, Julien smiled and said, "De king was only kidding. Of course we will help you find your locater thingy."

Marlene raised a brow. "Okay then. Maurice, did Alice look like she was going to wake up soon?"

"No, she was out cold and looked like she had been for some time."

"Good. It's still early and there will be no zookeepers around for a while. Its a great time to go get that device."

* * *

**/AN:** Wahoo writing is fun. Remember when I said if you don't review a puppy dies? I lied, a puppy doesn't die. But I'll give you $5 if you do. **:AN\**


	22. Telephones

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 22 – Telephones**

**"WHAT DO YOU MEAN?" **

Why would Manfredi need his help? How could he even help? Skipper found himself confused.

The robot penguin continued looking at the ground, his back turned to Skipper. He held the twisted dagger loosely in his flipper. He took a few deep breaths, then sniffled. It became apparent to Skipper that he was holding back tears.

"I need your help to track down and eliminate my target." he said simply but clearly.

Skipper didn't respond for a little while. He wondered whether he should help his old teammate or not.

"Manfredi," Skipper started. "I left the zoo, and my team, looking for you. After you attacked me in my headquarters and I realized you were still alive, I had a lot of questions. So many that it was giving me headaches and keeping me up at night. I wasn't expecting to find you so quickly, though. You've answered a lot of my questions, but I still have more to ask. Now what I didn't do is I didn't come out here to track down some penguin from my past that I hardly remember, and have no clue about its location. I'm sorry, but I can't help you."

Manfredi turned around quickly, almost as if he was taken aback. Skipper noticed a trickle of a tear trailing down the feathered side of his face. It made him suddenly feel very uncomfortable.

"My target..." he seemed to stutter. Earlier Manfredi had been an unreadable facade. Now Skipper could read sadness and despair on his face.. "My target took everything from me. First he took my freedom—my right to oppose, to disagree, to retaliate. Then he took my home. Then he took my friends and my family. He took my fiancée and my unborn child. Then, with nearly nothing left, he took Johnson from me. Stabbed him in the back."

"I—I..." Skipper was speechless.

"I have tracked him for over a year now. I have followed any clue I could find. I ventured across Asia, Europe, even places as far out as Australia. One day, when I thought the trail had gone cold, I came across a photo of the Central Park Zoo. You were in that photo, and I thought you were my target. That is what brought me here to New York. But now it seems that the trail has gone cold once again." Manfredi took a few steps closer to Skipper. The robot-penguin was considerably taller than Skipper, and Skipper suddenly felt very small. "That is why I need your help, Skipper. You are the last thing on this planet that means anything to me. After all, this planet is huge. We would not have been brought together unless it was for a reason."

Skipper, who had felt confident until this moment, sighed and said, "I have some information that might help you."

* * *

Marlene led the small group of zoo animals towards the Central Park Zoo offices. It was a small building of three or four offices and a lobby where the legal aspects of running a zoo were handled. It was where Alice spent most of her time, along with a few employees who mainly filed paperwork. It was also where the zookeepers clocked in at the beginning of their shifts, and clocked out at the end. For this reason, they had to hurry because it would be bustling with activity in only a few hours.

The sun had just started to break the horizon and although no light could be seen, the sky was a drab gray and it was bright enough for the streetlights to go out. The air was cool and crisp, and it felt good on Marlene's face. She wished she could take some more time to enjoy the morning like she normally did, but her mind was currently racing.

The three penguins walked closely behind her, Private looking worked, Kowalski determined and Rico distracted. The lemurs walked off to the side, Mort bounding along after Julien.

"Okay, so Alice's office is in here?" asked Marlene when they approached the building.

"Yes. About a month ago we infiltrated this facility with the chimps in order to access Alice's computer."

Maurice walked over and pushed on the door, but it didn't budge. "How'd you get in?" he asked.

Kowalski held up a flipper to point at something and began to say, "There is a..."

"Isn't it obvious?" Julien interjected. "We need someone big and strong to break down the door."

"Uh-huh," huffed Marlene, "and that 'someone' is you, right?"  
Julien looked wide-eyed at Marlene, "Of course not. That's what I have my chunky monkey for. Maurice, break de door for me."

"Your majesty, I can't break down this door," responded Maurice, knocking on the door.

"Well then how are we supposed to get inside?" shot Julien. Maurice shrugged.

Kowalski slapped his head, "I was trying to say there is an access point on the other side of the building. It's a stack of crates and an unlocked window."

"See Maurice, you should listen to de smart fishy penguin more." mocked Julien, crossing his arms. Maurice merely shrugged his shoulders again.

The group proceeded to the back of the building, where Rico and Maurice worked together to lift up the heavy window. The animals proceeded inside.

Alice's office was tiny, merely a desk with a computer and a few stacks of papers, a filing cabinet and a bookshelf on one wall full of zoology books. Good, thought Marlene, not many places to look. There was a small, black and white television next to the computer, and a man in a suit was sitting at a desk talking about the news on it.

"...information about the fish crisis on the east cost of the United States isn't ready available," he said, "but scientists are looking into every possible cause. Pollution and global climate change have already been eliminated, though, because studies show that the waters around New York and other major cities is cleaner than it has been in a hundred years, and scientists say the water is an ideal temperature for the fish to live. Meanwhile, all major fishing industry on the East Cost has been driven out of business by the lack of fish, causing thousands of industrial workers to loose their jobs..."

"What are we looking for K'walski?" asked Private.

"A small, square or rectangular device, presumably with a few buttons and some sort of screen," answered Kowalski. "Something that could be used to display a map or even a radar.

Julien hopped up onto a desk and picked up one piece of paper. He tossed it onto the floor and said, "Well, de king can't find it." Then he bounced down into the desk chair and crossed his legs.

Marlene shook her head. "It can't be too hard to find, this room isn't that big," she said.

"_Buttons!"_ shouted Rico. He was holding up a small device above his head with a small screen and many different buttons with numbers on them on its front side.

"That's a cellphone," recognized Marlene. "It's like a regular telephone, just smaller and more portable."

Kowalski took the device from Rico and studied it carefully, and then gave it back to the heavyset penguin. "Marlene is right, this isn't what we're looking for, although it was a good attempt, Rico."

Rico responded by smiling widely, his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth.

"C'mon guys, we don't have a lot of time. We need that device." instructed Marlene, observing the sun starting to come in through the window.

They continued searching, being careful not to move too many things out of place in case Alice would notice. A good amount of time passed and they couldn't find anything.

"I don't think what we're looking for is here, Kowalski." said Maurice.

"It must be," answered Kowalski. "Alice is the head zoo keeper, so she must be the one to control the device that has our locations on it."

"Well if that is true," said Marlene, "and it isn't here in her office, that means that..." Her words trailed off as they heard the front door of the office building slam open and heavy footsteps began heading their way.

"Crazy penguins and their crazy attacking me and what not," said a voice that could only be Alice's. "Dammit this hurts."

The footsteps stopped for a moment. Judging by Marlene's best guess, she was right outside the door to her office. The animals looked awkwardly at each other, not sure of what to do. They couldn't all make it out of the window before she entered, and there was hardly any places to hide in the room. Marlene gasped as the door opened a crack.

"Now this thing is broken too, I must have fallen on it. It says all the penguins are right on top of me! What a piece of crap. I'm going to call Andrew and have him send me a new one." said Alice to herself, obviously frustrated.

"Alice must have the device!" whispered Kowalski to Marlene.

"I know, but right now we need a place to hide, we can't get caught in here." answered Marlene.

"I have a plan," said Kowalski. He signaled Marlene and the other animals to move to a wall beside the door. When it seemed like they were all there, Marlene noticed Julien still sitting in Alice's chair. He had dozed off!

"Julien!" she shouted under her breath, but it was no use. Right at that moment, the door flung open, almost squashing Marlene and the other animals between it and the wall, but it stopped in time because of a door stopper. Kowalski's plan worked: the door shielded them from Alice's view, but also trapped them between it and the wall. Under the crack in the door they could see Alice's shuffle over to her desk.

"This stupid thing isn't working. I know those penguins ran away somewhere but they aren't in this room, dammit." said Alice, who obviously had not noticed Julien yet. Marlene prayed he would wake up and run under the desk or something. "Where's my cellphone, I always leave it right here!" continued Alice. Marlene looked over to see Rico still holding the cellular device in his flippers. He smiled awkwardly. She looked around and saw a crack just big enough for the cellphone between the door and its frame. She signaled Rico to toss it through the opening and into the hallway. Fortunately, at that exact moment, the phone began ringing.

Alice swiveled around and said, "Oh, there it is." She tossed the GPS device onto the floor and walked out to the hallway to pick up the cellphone. Now was their only chance of getting away undetected.

"Rico, Maurice, help me close this door," instructed Marlene. The lemur and penguin nodded. "Private, get up on Kowalski's shoulders and get ready to lock the door when we close it. It's our only chance."

"Alright, Marlene," responded Private.

In a flash, Maurice, Rico and Marlene slammed the door on Alice, who had just answered her phone. Private and Kowalski swiftly locked the door, and within a second Alice was already pounding on the door.

"Alright, this isn't funny! Open this door now or I'll call the police and have you arrested for breaking and entering!" Alice shouted, furious.

"Rico, grab the device," instructed Kowalski. The heavyset penguin lifted the GPS, which was about as big as one of his flippers, onto his back. Then, the four of them made their way to the window.

"Let's go, let's go!" urged Maurice, who was already hoisting the window open. Mort beckoned them from the windowsill.

"You've got until the count of three until I break this door down." came Alice's voice. "One..."

"Where's Julien?" asked Marlene, pointing to the now empty desk chair.

"I don't know, maybe he already escaped," explained Maurice, "but we've got to get out of here _now_!"

Without any more of a question the penguins and Marlene hopped out of the window, which Maurice let close behind him. In a blink, they were safely concealed within the bushes. Moments later, Alice came tumbling into the room. She rubbed her shoulder where she had bashed the door in. glancing around, she saw that nothing was out of place.

She put the phone back to her ear, "Andrew, we've got a serious problem here. Either I'm going crazy, or these penguins are still after me."

* * *

**/AN: **This will probally be the last chapter for some time. I am putting a lot of my free time to making gaming videos on youtube, but I did enjoy writing and I'll have some more chapters up eventually. Tell me what you think about my story so far, though! After all, these last three chapters took me around eight hours or so to write. **:AN\**


	23. Remote Control

Skipper's Log. 03:00 hours on August the twenty fifth.

_"Manfredi finally cracked._

_"He woke Johnson and myself up around midnight and threw packs full of basic survival items at us. __He told us we had to leave, and we had to leave no questions asked. Johnson and I looked at each other for awhile, but it was all too sudden. Manfredi told us there was no time to explain, but I wasn't so sure going AWOL was really a good thing to be doi__ng. _

_"He pleaded with us for some time to go with him. Eventually he became desperate and told us how our leaders were actually, and I quote 'corrupt psychopaths.' He admitted that earlier that day he had been discharged for 'actively speaking out agai__nst superiors.' He told us that before he could leave he had been captured and told he would be executed in the morning. He apparently escaped. No idea how, though. After that he tossed two automatic gauss rifles at us. _

_"I'm still holding mine right__ now, actually. We were shown them and did a little target practice in the last couple of weeks but never really were trained to use them. It gives sort of an overwhelming sense of protection. Anyway, Manfredi told us that if we were caught with him we w__ould be executed in the same way he would, but without us he would be powerless to stop our leaders from whatever it is they are doing... which actually he didn't get around to telling us. _

_"Johnson and I went with him. I don't really know why. We just__ did. Maybe it's just because we've been stuck up together for so long now we have some sort of brotherly bond. Maybe it's just a gut feeling that it was the right thing to do._

_"Or maybe we're just being blindly stupid here..."_

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 23 - Remote Control**

**MANFREDI'S EYES SUDDENLY LIT UP.**

It was sort of a surprise to Skipper. After seeing the penguin's emotionless, almost lifeless eyes, the scene was one that was reminiscent of how crying little boys start laughing when they see their favorite cartoons. Skipper could tell that his ex-teammate was listening intently.

Skipper looked down the alleyway. The morning light was just starting to wake the city up. In the distance he could hear some cars quietly speeding along. A car alarm sounded from far away. The thought of making a break for it crossed his mind. Even though, he returned his attention to Manfredi, who had finally set down the dagger he had been mechanically twirling.

"Look... I, uh," he started, awkwardly, "I didn't actually see it myself, but there was a penguin that was harassing one of my good friends a few weeks back, apparently. When she described to me what the penguin looked like, it kind of rang a bell, but I couldn't quite place it. Basically, she said this penguin looked sort of like me. She and a few other animals from the zoo chased it off and we haven't heard from it since... but who knows, it could still be around."

Manfredi nodded. "So this friend of yours from the zoo will show us the way?"

"Can't say for sure," responded Skipper, "but she's the only one who got a good look at this penguin, anyway. The interesting thing about it though, is earlier the same night, my team... err, cell-mates, came upon a pigeon in an alley. She said her husband had been killed by some sort of a rouge penguin and she described it to us. Her description was different than my friend's, but similar enough so I'm assuming it was the same penguin..."

Skipper's voice trailed off as he noticed Manfredi suddenly sat down and gazed at the ground. He looked like he was suddenly racked with guilt. A few moments of awkward silence again passed between the two birds. Manfredi picked up the dagger and began twirling it in his flippers again. Finally, Manfredi spoke.

"I killed that pigeon." Manfredi said. Skipper was taken aback and suddenly felt very uncomfortable.

"Why?" responded Skipper after a moment. "I mean, was it attacking you, or what?"  
"No."

Silence. Skipper twiddled his flippers.

"The pigeon merely insulted me. That is all." Manfredi said plainly without looking up from the ground. "I blacked out, lost control of my own thoughts. Next thing I realized, I was looking at the dead body of S-S..."

Suddenly, Manfredi jumped up, grunted with exertion and hurled the dagger towards Skipper. Instinctively Skipper jumped out of the way. The next thing he heard was the clang of the dagger hitting the dumpster behind him. He looked to see it embedded a full inch into the soft metal. Although, he then realized it would have come nowhere close to hitting him. Manfredi had already sat down again and continued sulking.

Skipper waited a moment before speaking. "This is obviously not something you want to talk about." He sighed. Not knowing what to say, he walked over and sat down next to his old teammate, eyes locked on to the twisted knife still sticking out of the dumpster. "I don't think I ever want to know what it is like to destroy the life of someone innocent..."

"The innocent have died and the guilty live on," Manfredi said thoughtfully.

"You're nothing like you were, Manfredi," observed Skipper.

Manfredi let a moment pass before responding. "I never will be." Skipper looked over at his ex-teammate who had still not lifted his eyes from the ground. "I'm dead on the inside, Skipper. I shouldn't still be breathing. I'm only here for one purpose... and that is to eliminate my target."

* * *

"Okay," Kowalski began. The animals stood in a semi-circle around him in the ruined headquarters while he held the GPS device they had just stolen from Alice's office. "It is pretty clear that the orange dot is where this GPS device is," he pointed to the dot in the center of the screen that was in the middle of Central Park Zoo on the virtual map. "And these three green dots close together are Private, Rico and I," he pointed very nearby the orange dot where three green dots clumped up together, "so where is Skipper's location?"

Kowalski pressed some buttons to zoom out to the GPS's fullest possible area, and yet there was no fourth green dot to reveal Skipper's coordinates.

"Maybe Skipper is already out of range?" Maurice asked.

"There's no way that could be correct," explained Kowalski. "The GPS has a fifty mile display range and even if Skipper has managed to catch a train there is no way he could be off of Long Island just since last night."

Marlene rubbed her chin. "What if Skipper managed to disable his chip or something?"

"It's doubtful Skipper would have the ability to do such a thing without assistance, based on the chip's location and design." answered Kowalski. "I'm not sure exactly how he might have."

A few thoughtful minutes of silence passed before the hatch door to the headquarters suddenly flung open. Julien stood proudly in the entrance.

"Hello my subjects!" he announced, "Please bask in de awesomeness of your king."

Marlene was furious. "I'm not even going to _start_ with you Julien, you almost got us all captured and sent off to some nature preserve or something. Why do you have to be _so _useless?"

"Yeah, your majesty, but falling asleep in the chair like that was pretty wrong considering our situation, y'know." Maurice continued.

"Maurice," responded Julien, ignoring Marlene for a minute.

"Yes?"

"Shut up a little bit, okay?"

Maurice shrugged. Marlene only shook her head in disapproval.

"You see, my subjects, your king was doing a little sneaking around." Julien began to explain. "I was hiding in an empty drawer in Alice's desk while you snuck away. When Alice left the room I did some snooping of my own and I found a shiny box. Inside of de box was this."

Julien pushed over some sort of small device similar to the GPS unit across the floor to Kowalski. He picked it up and began to examine it.

"There are three buttons here," he began "Green, yellow, and red. I can't quite make out what the writing says, but by the looks of it, the buttons may have something to do with the core operating systems involved with the tracking chips."

"K'walski, do you think this has something to do with turning off the GPS chips?" asked Private.

Kowalski rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then answered, "You might very well be correct, Private, if it even controls the chips at all. If your theory is accurate though, the green button would turn the chips on." He pointed to the green button which had a small LED light illuminating it. "The yellow button would have some adverse effects on the chips, perhaps disabling them for a short period of time, while the red button would turn the chips off completely."

"Do you think Skipper might have gotten his hands on this or something like it to disable his own tracking chip?" Maurice asked.

"It's plausible," responded the tall penguin.

"_Turn off, turn__ off_," urged Rico.

"Well here goes nothing," said Kowalski, about to press the red button on the small remote.

Julien cleared his throat obnoxiously loud, causing Kowalski to stop. "Instead of just going all willy-nilly with the button mashing, de king has conveniently also taken this packet of paper."

Julien slid a paper booklet, which up until this point Marlene had not noticed, over to Kowalski. The intellectual handed the remote to Private and picked up the booklet to study it. He turned it upside down and flipped through the pages.

"I can't make anything out of this," he responded, disappointed. "This human code is just so hard to crack."

"Maybe we should take it to the chimps, K'walski," offered Private, "Maybe they can make heads or tails of what this is all about."

Kowalski looked up from the book and then nodded.

Julien cleared his throat again, even more obnoxiously then the previous time, and then spoke loudly, "Silly fishy penguin, de king has all the answers you seek."

Marlene slapped her forehead with her palm. Julien was once again just trying to play up his stupid hero routine. Even though the lemur had accomplished something so helpful, Marlene wanted to leave and forget he even did anything.

"You see," he began, walking over to Private and grabbing the remote from him. "This green button here is de button that turns the chippy thingy on, yes?" He jabbed the button with a long finger, and nothing happened. "This yellow button is de button that turns off de chippy thingy," he jabbed that button, and the LED light turned on next to the yellow button and began flashing. Finished with his explanation, he handed the remote back to Private and crossed his arms proudly.

"Genius, Julien," said Kowalski, bewildered, "absolutely genius." He observed the GPS device again. "All of the green dots are gone and only a orange dot—the device it self—remains. How did you figure that out? Did you already take the instructions to the primates for decoding?"

Julien shook his head. "Silly bird, you are so smart but yet you act so stupid sometimes. Your king has been taking de time to learn the workings of this_ reading_, as de people call it, and I figured it out on my own."

"Wow," responded the intellectual penguin, "You must teach me sometime!"

"Yes you see, de king would be happy to pass down his knowledge…"

"That's enough, Julien!" interrupted Marlene, who was growing angry with all of Julien's showboating. "You almost got us all captured for some stupid remote that turns off these stupid chips, but that won't do us any good because if they are _off_, we won't be able to see Skipper anyway."

Julien smiled awkwardly, "Well, uh, I figured after we find de fishy run-off-penguin the chippy thingies could be disabled."

Marlene only shook her head. A moment of awkward science passed between the group before Maurice finally broke it.

"Hey, King Julien, if the green button turns the tracking chips on, and the yellow turns them off, then what in the world is the red button used for?" He pointed to the red button on the remote that Private was still holding.

"Oh, that silly button?" Julien huffed, "It said it had something to do with termite Nate, whoever that is."

Kowalski rubbed his chin, "Perhaps it sends a homing beacon to this 'Nate' so that he might locate us?"

"What could that be used for, K'walski?" asked Private, looking at his taller teammate.

"It could be good or bad, but it would be safer to not push the button until we know for sure," answered the intellectual.

Julien shrugged, "Either way, de king had provided de penguins with all the help I could, so it is time for me to leave. Come, my subjects." He began making his way out of the porthole door, beckoning his subjects to follow.

Maurice turned to the others, "Let us know if Skipper ever pops up on that map of yours, and we'll come with you to try to find him," he offered.

"Thanks, Maurice," acknowledged Kowalski. Maurice nodded and then followed his obnoxious king out of the room.

"Wow, Marlene, you were awfully mean to King Julien," said Private. "That's not normally like you. Are you alright?"

Marlene nodded. "He just gets on my nerves, always putting himself before everyone and then acting like he is the big hero in everything he does." Private nodded in understanding. Marlene redirected her attention toward Kowalski. "So, what do you think we should do now?"

"Well, assuming that Skipper obtained his own remote, one that only affects his tracking chip, we should turn all of the chips back on and wait for his dot to appear on the radar." Kowalski sighed and looked at the GPS device. "We can only hope that it will appear before he leaves the range of the radar, though."

Private looked helpless. "K'walski, what if we can't find the Skippah. What if we never see him again?" Marlene saw some tears welling up in his eyes.

Kowalski looked a little uneasy at first, but Marlene noticed he looked just as helpless. "No, Private, don't say that," he stuttered on his own words, "I mean, I calculate a ninety-three percent chance that he'll appear on the radar before long… I think…"


	24. Corporate Musings

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 24 – Corporate Musings**

The two ex-teammates continued to sit in silence for some time. Skipper wasn't sure what to say. He recalled when they used to talk about silly things when they were sitting in their bunks back in the military camp. Things like fishing, food, and girls. They would laugh and make up silly puns while Johnson quietly wrote in his journal. They would pick on their younger, literate friend and punch him in the shoulder. Then all three of them would laugh before moving out to preform their duties.

Skipper sighed. How could he have forgotten his past friends so easily? He remembered telling himself he only wanted to forget about Manfredi and Johnson shortly before he came to Central Park Zoo. He sat up at night wondering what ever did happen to them... at least that was until Kowalski, Private, and Rico showed up. With new friends he found it easy to let the old ones slip from his mind. Suddenly, Skipper was overcome with a heavy feeling of guilt.

Trying to get his mind off the subject, he gazed down the alleyway. The day was really picking up now; the sun had fully broken the horizon and traffic was picking up on the streets. Previously, the air had been filled with awkward silence, but now it was filled with car horns and voices speaking nothing important.

Manfredi placed a flipper on Skipper's shoulder. Skipper noted the icy cold touch of the metal plating.

"We should get going to see your friend," Manfredi said, all evidence of his recent breakdown gone from his face. "We are far from Central Park."

Skipper got up, shrugging off Manfredi's flipper as he did. "Well, uh..." he began, "You see, I can't go back there."

"Oh?"

"Yeah."

"Then how will I meet with this friend of yours?" asked Manfredi.

Skipper rubbed his beak. "I guess I can show you the way back to Central Park Zoo if you want."

"But you will not enter with me?"

"No."

Manfredi shook his head in disapproval, then got up and walked over to where the crooked dagger was still embedded in the side of the dumpster. He took it out of the dumpster and ran his flipper along it's edge. "How do you think your friends will react when they see the penguin that almost killed their leader, and acknowledge that their leader is now missing?"

"I'm not their leader!" Skipper shot, although Manfredi did not even flinch. "I'm their friend."

Manfredi nodded. "How do you think they will react if I walk into the zoo asking questions?"

Skipper didn't respond. He knew they both already knew the answer. Private, Rico, Kowalski would have none of that. They would take Manfredi captive, question him, possibly even go as far forcing the answers out of him, and most certainly not answer Manfredi's questions about this Sarge penguin.

"I suppose your right," Skipper said after a while, "But I don't think I can go back there."

"Why is that?"

Skipper felt uncomfortable. Trying to compose himself, he said, "I left without a trace. I didn't say goodbye. Fish and chips, I didn't even leave a note."

Manfredi looked expressionless. Skipper noted how he was not judgmental. "You are afraid that your friends will be upset with you for leaving." Manfredi said simply, almost as if he knew the answer this whole time. Skipper hated how Manfredi had always been able to read through any facade.

"Yes," responded the leader penguin, seeing how futile it would be to try to argue, "I didn't plan on coming back."

Manfredi nodded again. "Why did you leave?"

Skipper sighed. "I left to come find you. I wanted to ask you questions about what happened since you ran back into that building and it collapsed after you."

"I understand." Manfredi answered. "I had similar questions about you, which you have kindly answered for me."

"So answer some of mine," said Skipper, "and I'll bring you to Mar... my friend."

Manfredi's eyes lit up slightly. "Why do you hide your friend's name from me?"

Skipper didn't want to answer. He didn't know why, but he felt like he needed to protect his friends from Manfredi. At the same time, however, he felt completely safe around him. Regardless, if Manfredi had really killed that pigeon over an insult, he wanted to be cautious about bringing him to see his friends.

"Don't mind it," Skipper finally said, "You'll learn her... or his, name when you get to the zoo."

Manfredi nodded understandingly. Skipper wondered how the robot penguin knew exactly when to agree and when to argue. "So anyway, can I ask some questions now? Like what happened to Johnson and how did..."

Skipper trailed off as Manfredi held up a flipper. "The day is still young. If my target is still located on Long Island, we will need to figure out where he is before he leaves."

"I don't think a few minutes will make a big difference, you can answer some of my questions. Besides, we saw that penguin over two weeks ago at this point."

This time it was Manfredi's turn to sigh, "Skipper, I do not think you understand."

Skipper blinked.

"You do not realize that these memories I have buried deep within me. These memories would be the most painful to dig up, the most painful to explain. These are the memories that attack me in my dreams at night. They are the memories that caused me to kill that innocent bird. I assure you, though, I will tell you the full story when the time is right."

Skipper was speechless. Manfredi walked over to the pack that was still on the ground and slid the crooked dagger into it. "We should get going," the robot penguin offered, sliding the pack onto his back, "The city will be very crowded soon."

* * *

Alice hopped out of her taxi and looked up at the tall office building in front of her. The early morning sun was glinting off of the large, glass windows. She could make out a sign several stories up that read – _Green Security Systems, Inc._.

After checking her watch, she crossed her arms as the taxi pulled away from the curb. Green had asked her to come down to his office only twenty minutes ago. She had payed twelve dollars for the cab ride here. She scowled, knowing that she would not have enough money to buy lunch now. She began crossing the street, trying to forget about her grumbling stomach.

She walked into the building through the sliding doors and looked around. Everything was clean; marble floors and a glass chandelier. She walked up to a desk where a secretary was busily typing something on a computer.

"Excuse me?" she said. The woman behind the desk jumped slightly and looked up.

"Oh, sorry, may I help you?" she asked politely.

"Yeah. I need to speak to Andy. Know where he is?"

The secretary looked confused. "Er, Ma'am, we have many Andy's who work at GSS, is there a specific one you're looking for?"

Alice slapped her head. "Andrew Green."

"Oh, sorry about that! You must be Alice Smith. Mr. Green is expecting you." replied the secretary with a smile.

"So, uh, where is his office?" asked Alice.

"Mr. Green requested that you meet him downstairs in the development laboratories. I can let him know you are here or..."

"That's alright. I'll go there myself. How do I get there?"

The secretary looked uneasy for a minute. "You take the elevators down the hall to floor BB and then you can follow the signs to get to the lab," she said, pointing to a nearby hallway.

"Perfect," responded Alice and walked away, leaving the secretary to shake her head and return to her computer.

Alice walked down the corridor and walked up to the elevators. Rather than entering one with several people already inside, she decided to wait for an empty one. While she was waiting, she noted that Andy had never invited her to his actual business, and this was her first time here. Whenever they had met in the past it had always been in her office or in a local diner. She had never realized just how massive the man's company was and how much money he must have. No wonder he could afford to give her discounts on all her services.

The next elevator emitted a ding, and the door opened. Several people in suits walked out, and Alice suddenly felt out of place in her dirty zoo work clothes. She shrugged and entered the elevator. She pressed BB, noting that there were 33 floors, and the elevator lurched to a start.

When she reached the bottom and stepped out of the elevator, it didn't take her long to find the laboratory. She glanced through a window and saw a massive room with many whirring machines and hundreds of people running around in lab coats. No wonder why Andy was able to develop the CIES, thought Alice.

She walked into the lab and asked the nearest person where Andy might be. Once again, the person was confused until she referenced him as Mr. Green. The employee pointed to as short, stout man leaning over a table and looking at several monitors. Alice marched over to the table and put a hand on his shoulder, causing him to jump.

"Whoa, uh hello, Alice," Mr. Green greeted, straightening his tie.

"Why'd you drag me down here, Andy?" responded Alice quickly.

Mr. Green sighed, "Always quick to get to the point, aren't you, Alice?"

"Yeah, so get to the point,"

"These are the monitors that display the feedback from the CIES implanted in your penguins," said the business man, pointing to the monitors. Three were on and displayed a concrete bunker. One showed a clipboard with a flipper rapidly scribbling down some symbols Alice could not recognize. Another showed a television with channel 8 news on. Another showed a pair of flippers trying to open a can of tuna. The last monitor only showed static, presumably the monitor for the penguin that jammed the signal of his CIES.

Alice was impressed, looking at the monitor for the penguin that was writing. "I didn't know my penguins were so advanced."

"Apparently so. My employees have been gathering a lot of interesting video over the last two weeks," Mr. Green gestured to a growing pile of DVDs, "and frankly, you need to see it."

Alice nodded. "Did you get any video from the penguins that attacked me?"

"That is the odd thing. At the time you were attacked, the three penguins who monitors are still on were at that strange party. At the same time, the fourth penguin's monitor was static, but the last reported location of it was on a direct course to leave the zoo. So it is doubtful any of your penguins were the ones that attacked you."

Alice scratched her head. "That makes no sense. How would some penguins get into the middle of New York when there isn't another zoo on Long Island?"

"I am quite curious of it myself. We have been studying penguin behavior and nothing leads to any hint of these penguin's aggressiveness or tenacity. Yet, the evidence of its occurrence still shows." Mr. Green pointed to a spot on Alice's pant leg where a small hole and some dried blood existed. Alice had not noticed it before.

"Yeah I don't remember how that happened," Alice responded, pulling up her pant leg slightly in order to see a small puncture wound, already starting to heal over. "They must have stabbed me with something."

"Plausible," nodded Mr. Green, "and if it is the case, then we have something really troublesome on our hands."

"What do you want to do about it?" asked Alice.

"Nothing."

Alice's eyes grew wide. "These penguins almost _killed_ me and all you want to do is _nothing_ ?" Her voice boomed, causing everyone in the lab too look over at the pair. "We should call animal control! We should call the police! We should call the army for crying out loud!"

"Alice! Alice, calm down!" urged Mr. Green, waving his hands.

Alice scouled, "Okay, why do you think we should do _nothing_?"

"It's the CIES," explained the stout businessman, "if animal control takes the penguins away, regardless if they were the ones that attacked you or not, they will perform tests and find the CIES. You see, Alice, I do not have a license to perform animal testing."

"They have a license for that?"

"Yes. If they find out what we have done, they will surely sue me, and at the same time shut down your zoo."

Alice grumbled. "So what should we do? We can't just sit around and do nothing."

"We can watch." Mr. Green gestured to the computer screens. "My interns have confirmed that the penguins stole, however they might have known what it does, both the GPS tracking device and the remote control that disables the chips. Fortunately for us, they have left the chips on, so we can continue observing. Unfortunately, though, we will not be able to track their positions.

"So lets go in there and take the stupid thing from them," offered Alice.

"That would also be unwise," noted Mr. Green, "at least until we know how dangerous these penguins really are."

Alice scratched her head again. "Can't you just make another one of those stupid trackers?"

"We are already making efforts to tune another device into the exact frequency of the chips, although a unique and specific frequency was chosen, specifically so that the signal may not be tracked by anyone else. It seems that this concept has backfired."

"Why didn't you make a spare?"

Mr. Green frowned. "Why didn't you keep a closer eye on the GPS tracker in the first place?"

"Excuse me?" shot back Alice, raising voice again, "I was _attacked_ by those stupid birds!" She pointed to the screen. The room fell silent as everyone again directed their attention to the fuming redhead. "I could have _kept my eye_ on it if I wasn't unconscious!"

Mr. Green tapped Alice's shoulder. "It's alright, Alice, I should have kept the devices here instead of trusting them to your hands."

Alice's face grew bright red. "I don't care how _big_ and how _successful_ your business is, Andy, but you have no right to call me irresponsible!" Suddenly, she grabbed the monitor with static from the wall and threw it at Mr. Green. Mr. Green ducked and the monitor shattered on the ground. Mr. Green looked furious.

"Great, nice job, _Alice_," he shouted, "Now we won't have any information from that penguin!"

"The screen was static anyway!" shot back Alice. "You should have fixed it a _long time ago_!"

"Things aren't so simple, _Alice_."

"I'll break another one of these damn monitors! Would that be simple enough for you?" She reached for another monitor, but Mr. Green batted her hand away.

"This isn't going anywhere helpful, Alice," he sounded a little bit more calm, "We need to work together on this if we want to deal with these penguins."

Alice crossed her arms and grunted, "I guess so."

Mr. Green pushed his glasses up his nose. "I will continue trying to tune into the signal from the chips—you should keep an eye out for that missing penguin, because now we will have no information on him."

Alice looked at the screen. The TV was off and it looked like the penguin was now asleep on the couch. Why had she given them that TV in the first place? "Alright," she stated simply.

* * *

**/AN:** This chapter should probally have been two chapters. But instead of making two short ones, I just switched the POV. Hurray. Also, I'll be doing some more regular writing now, hopefully, so you can check back for new chapters every week or two.** :AN\**


	25. Abduction

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 25 - Abduction**

"**K'WALKSI, ANYTHING ON THE RADAR YET?"**

The short, round bird looked troubled. Marlene had lost count of how many times Private had asked that question. She had watched the penguin go from hopeful to helpless throughout the course of the day. He regularly checked in with Kowalski, who kept the GPS tracking device close at hand. Each time Private asked, he would reach over and grab it off of a nearby table. Earlier in the day, the intellectual would respond with a "Don't worry, I'm sure he will appear soon," and now he merely shook his head solemnly.

Marlene had been in and out of the penguin's HQ several times over the course of the day; she occasionally returned to her own habitat to ensure the zookeepers would not think she was missing. Maurice also checked in with the penguins, although less frequently than the otter, claiming that Julien wanted to know when the "fishy leader penguin" returned.

Marlene took note of the ruined penguins' headquarters; they had worked diligently to clean it up and repair what they could over the course of the day. The overturned furniture had been righted and the beds were remade. Now all that remained was the cracked porthole window—which Rico had thoroughly taped over with duct tape. Even though, a small amount of water was slowly leaking through the tape and into a bucket that Kowalski had placed under the window.

"Hey guys," said Marlene, noting she had not yet been noticed.

Kowalski jumped slightly from his clipboard and looked up, "Oh, hello again, Marlene."

"What's up? Anything new?" Marlene walked over to the tall, intellectual friend and looked over his shoulder at what he was writing on his clipboard. Several pictures of a flat-headed penguin with arrows pointing between buildings were drawn—the intellectual was trying to figure out where Skipper might have gone.

"Skippah hasn't shown up on the radar yet, Marlene," said Private sadly. Rico walked over to the small device, picked up, grunted, and then slammed it back down on the table.

"Rico!" Kowalski suddenly shouted, "be careful with that! If you break it, there isn't a way we will be able to find Skipper!"

Rico crossed his flippers and and mumbled something intelligible.

"Sorry, Marlene," interjected Private, "Things are getting awfully tense around here."

Marlene smiled, "Don't worry about it, dude. I'm worried for Skipper too." Private nodded.

"I just don't get it," said Kowalski, "nothing makes sense. There is no possible way that Skipper would be able to jam or disable his chip without this remote!" Kowalski threw his clipboard toward the remote that was sitting on the table near the GPS. He stood up. "I don't understand, and now he could be miles away from the range of this stupid device!"

"K'walski calm down," urged Private, "the Skippah is resourceful. I'm sure he beat those bad blokes and is on his way back right now."

"Don't you get it? Skipper didn't get abducted!" responded the intellectual, throwing his flippers into the air. "He left us, abandoned us, deserted us, and he's never coming back. He left to find that _stupid_ friend of his that almost _killed_ him and..."

Kowalski trailed off as he saw Private's eyes well up with tears. "No... no," Private said softly, "The S-Skippah wouldn't do that to us... right Marlene?"

Marlene had never seen Kowalski as angry as he was right now. She was unsure how to respond to Private. She looked over at Rico, who was blankly pounding a can of tuna against the wall.

Without any response, Private continued, "Skippah taught us to stick together until the very end. Remember our mission to the food market? We worked as a team to get out of there. The Skippah made sure we all made it out. He always said, 'No penguin left behind.' How can you accuse The Skippah of leaving us like that, K'walski? "

Kowalski snorted. "Its because we don't matter as much as his past. He's selfish about his secrets, Private. I always inquired him about what happened to him before he came to Central Park, and do you know what I always got as a response?"

Private remained quiet.

"'That's none of your business, soldier.' Every time, the same response. I doubt Skipper ever really cared about us. He knew one day that his _mysterious_ past was going to catch up to him and he was just holding out here with us until the right day to run away. _'_The sun will rise again' can almost be inferred as 'escape and let your friends almost get killed by some maniacal penguins!'"

Seeing the tears streaking down Private's face, Marlene put her foot down. "That's enough, Kowalski!" she shouted, "The Skipper I know wouldn't do that, and you know that's the truth. You're just trying make up for the fact that you can't figure it out, and you're hurting everyone around you."

Kowalski shot a glare at Marlene. "So, I'm trying to _compensate?_"

"Yes."

"It's a funny concept... _compensation_," said Kowalski. "Giving one thing away for something worth less and then trying to rationalize it. It makes no sense." He walked over to the table and grabbed his clipboard. Then he went to the hatch door and opened it slowly. "I'm not _compensating,_ Marlene. If Skipper cared about us so much, regardless of how much his past means to him, he would have at least told us why he left." He started walking out the door.

"W-where are you going K'walski?" asked a crying Private.

Kowalski froze and said, "Maybe you should have asked the same thing to Skipper, Private."

The hatch door slammed shut. Private sniffled.

Private and Marlene looked at each other, dumbfounded. The otter didn't know what to say. Kowalski had just stormed out of the room and left her in a daze. So instead of speaking, she walked up to the small, sobbing penguin and wrapped him in a big hug.

"It'll be alright, Private," she soothed.

Private broke the hug and looked up at his friend. "Thanks, Marlene." He wiped his nose on his flipper. "I've never see K'walski so upset."

"Neither have I," agreed the Asian otter, "but he's just a little angry at Skipper for leaving right as you guys were attacked."

Private nodded. "I just hope the Skippah's alright. I mean, those other penguins are looking for him."

"I don't know if they still are," Marlene said. Private looked confused. "They told me to tell him the message 'the sun will rise again'. That almost makes it seem like they are done looking for Skipper and they're just going to let him find them."

Private wiped a tear from his eye. "But what does it mean? What do they mean by 'the sun'?"

"Beats me," responded Marlene, "but Skipper obviously will know that it has something to do with these penguins."

"Yeah." Private walked over to the GPS, picked it up, and then walked over to the couch and sat down, messing with the dials. Marlene directed her attention to Rico, who had smashed through the can of tuna and left it splattered on the ground. He was now pounding another can of tuna in the same fashion. Marlene walked over and sat down next to him, wrapping an arm around the heavyset penguin's shoulders.

"You doing alright, big guy?" she asked.

Rico smashed the can one more time and then threw it to the other side of the room. He looked up at Marlene, a heavy look of sadness in his eyes. "_K'waski_," he grunted, _"he's never coming back_."

Marlene smiled slightly. "Kowalski just needs some fresh air. He'll be back soon, and so will Skipper."

Rico purred slightly, then grunted, "_Promise_?"

Marlene knew she couldn't promise anything right now, but she knew she had to for the sake of her friend's sanity. "Promise," she affirmed. Rico smiled widely, although Marlene could read from his eyes that he was still deeply troubled.

* * *

Skipper waddled into the zoo, Manfredi close behind him. They had reached the zoo nearly an hour ago, but they had to wait for it to close before they could enter because of the risk of being spotted. So, the two penguins camped outside the zoo behind some bushes until the zoo was mostly empty. The sun was getting low on the horizon now and the sky exploded into a fiery orange and red.

The two moved quickly from bush to bush, dodging under park benches and popcorn carts as there were still a few people roaming the pathways. Manfredi moved as swiftly and cleanly as Skipper did—he had obviously not let any amount of time come between him and his athleticism. Unless, Skipper wondered, his abilities were being enhanced by the fact that he was nearly half-robot. The leader penguin cleared his mind of the idea as he and Manfredi neared the otter habitat.

Wall jumping between a lamppost and the brick wall, Skipper quickly pulled himself over the tall barrier and splashed into the pool on the other side. Manfredi followed in suit, and when he appeared on the top of the wall he tossed the bag to Skipper and then splashed into the pool himself. Skipper couldn't help but notice how they still worked together so well, even without using vocal communication.

The two walked over to the entrance of Marlene's cave, where Skipper held up a flipper signaling Manfredi to wait for his signal before entering. Skipper did not want Marlene to become startled by the sight of his ex-teammate and scream, signaling anyone who may be nearby.

"Marlene?" Skipper called, expecting the otter to be in her cave. On the contrary, the cave was completely dark and empty. Realizing that she must be at the headquarters with Rico, Kowalski and Private, he signaled for Manfredi to follow him into the tunnel entrance just outside of Marlene's cave. Through the employee tunnels it was a short walk to the penguin habitat. Making sure to keep an eye out for any zookeepers, Skipper led Manfredi to the secret entrance to the HQ; the fish trophy that read _Private's first prize_.

Skipper placed a flipper on the door to push it open, but froze. He had not wanted to confront Rico, Kowalski and Private. He had hoped that he could get into the zoo, ask Marlene a few questions, and then get out again. He didn't know where he would go; he couldn't follow Manfredi and he couldn't return home. Realizing he had not thought this through, and afraid to confront his friends, he took a step back from the door.

"Is there a problem, Skipper?" asked Manfredi in his deep voice.

Skipper sighed. "I don't think I can go in there."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, I don't think I can confront my... cell mates after leaving so quickly. I wasn't planning on coming back."

"It is not a matter of if you think you can or not, you merely do not want to." Skipper looked up at his friend, who, to his surprise, had a slight smile on his face. "You told me that once."

Skipper remembered that day. It was after the Penguin Army had invaded Antarctica, despite all of their efforts to stop it.

_"I don't think I can go on.._." _said Manfredi, on his hands and knees in the snow, his Gauss rifle hanging loosely from his shoulder. Johnson and Skipper looked down on him pitifully. Manfredi had just lost everything; his home and his family. Realizing this, Johnson looked uneasy and redirected his attention toward the horizon. Skipper set his own rifle down and knelt down next to his grieving friend._

_"You don't think you can? Or do you just not want to?" he said. Manfredi looked up at Skipper, his eyes blank. Skipper offered him a hand and pulled him to his feet. "We tried our best to get here in time, but the fight isn't over yet. We can still stop this before it's too late."_

_Manfredi still looked shaken, but he tightened his grip on his rifle and said, "there is still something worth fighting for."_

_Skipper nodded._

"If they are truly your friends, they will listen to your story and will understand your circumstance."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Skipper pushed the door open slowly.

"Who's that?" he heard a female voice say. So Marlene was here after all.

Skipper entered the room and looked around. Marlene and Rico were playing a game of chess and Private was watching television. Rico spun around from the chess table and shouted, "_Huzzah!_" causing Private to jump so hard he fell off the couch. He got up quickly and upon seeing Skipper in the doorway he raced up to him and gave him a hug.

"Skippah! I knew you'd be back!" he said, excitedly, "Where did you go?"

Skipper pulled the round penguin away from him and smiled slightly. Manfredi was right, they weren't mad at him. They were only worried about him. Skipper suddenly felt guilty fore leaving.

"There was some important business I had to take care of," responded the leader penguin, "but it's all taken care of now."

"Kowalski said you went off to go hunt down an old friend who showed up here a while ago. Is that true?" said Marlene, getting up from the chess table.

"Yeah, I went off to go find an old comrade," said Skipper, "How did you know?"

"Kowalski is smarter than you think." answered Marlene.

"We were worried for you, Skippah. We even went and stole the tracking device that knows where our chip thingies are, but for some reason you're not on it." Private looked at the small tracking device. "That's odd, now only one dot is on it."

Skipper chuckled. "I used that old radar jammer that Kowalski built to block the signal so Alice couldn't track me. Now that it's closer its probably jamming all of our signals. Speaking of which, where is Kowalski?"

"He stormed out of the room like ten minutes ago. He was a little upset at you for leaving, but he should be back soon," Marlene explained.

"So did you ever find your friend?" asked Private.

Skipper looked a little uneasy. "Well, yes, and he'd like to speak with you Marlene."

"Why me?" Marlene wondered.

"Well I'll let him explain it to you." Skipper opened the door a little wider and let Manfredi step into the room. Immediately, Private gasped but clasped his flippers over his beak to silence the noise. Rico growled and took a fighting position while Marlene looked a little frightened and took a step back.

"Rico stand down!" ordered Skipper, "I know he's the one who attacked me before but he's a good friend of mine. There was just a little bit of confusion before."

Manfredi nodded. "I am Manfredi. It is a pleasure to meet you all."

Rico still looked a little uneasy, but he answered with a rough, "_Rico_."

"I'm Private," introduced the round penguin.

"Marlene," said the otter with a slight quiver in her voice. "You... you're like part made of metal." she observed.

Manfredi nodded solemnly. "Please don't be frightened," he said, "I assure you I am as normal of a penguin as Skipper."

"Skippah! You'll never guess what happened to us while you were gone," blurted out Private suddenly.

"What?"

"We were attacked by three crazy penguins after we left Julien's party. We fought back but they overpowered us and tied us up. They also attacked Marlene and Alice!" explained the young penguin.

Skipper looked over to Marlene. "Is this true?" he asked her.

Marlene nodded. "They were looking for you, Skipper."

"They asked us a ton of questions but we didn't tell them anything," added Private.

"What kind of questions did they ask about me?" wondered Skipper.

"I don't really remember," Private answered, "K'walski would know, though."

Almost as if on cue, there was a knock at the hatch door.  
"That must be him now," said Marlene, "I'll get it." She walked over to the door and opened it quickly, but instead of looking at the tall intellectual like she was expecting, she was looking down the business end of a rifle. She gasped and froze. In front of her was the small rock hopper penguin she recognized from the sewer.

Rico, after realizing what was going on, jumped toward the threat but it merely cocked the rifle and held up a flipper.

"Stand down Rico," ordered Skipper, clenching his flippers. "Let's see what he wants."

"Skipper," whispered Private, "That's one of the penguins that attacked us last night!"

Skipper nodded. The penguin in the doorway slid something across the floor to Marlene with his foot. He signaled for her to pick it up. She did, slowly. Then he signaled for her to close the door. She obeyed, unsure of what else to do. When the door was closed, Skipper quickly locked it tight.

"Fish and chips!" exclaimed Skipper. "those penguins who attacked you had _weapons_?"

"Private nodded, looking shaken.

"Uh, guys," said Marlene, looking at what the penguin had given to her. She held it up for the others to see, "This is Kowalski's clipboard."

Clipped to the clipboard was a single black feather.

* * *

**/AN: **Once again this chapter could have been two shorter ones, but in an effort to bring more content per update, I have made this into one long, exciting chapter. **:AN\**


	26. Action

**Funny note: **I got Phil and Mason backwards in this chapter, but it is fixed now.

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 26 - Action**

* * *

**"THEY'VE GOT KOWALSKI,"**

Marlene said it even though the other animals in the room had already realized it. There was a moment of awkward silence as everyone dealt with the sudden shock.

"Marlene," Skipper spoke up first, "where did Kowalski say he was going?"

"He didn't," the otter answered, staring at the clipboard, "He was yelling at Private so I tried to make him stop. Then he stormed out of the room. I figured he was just going to get some fresh air and clear his head."

"_K'waski_," wheezed Rico, shaking his head sadly.

"Private clasped his hands over his beak. Even through them, Skipper could tell his voice was shaky. "I tried to ask him w-where he was going, but he just told me off and left. I could have stopped him, S-Skippah. Why didn't I stop him?"

"That's not what matters right now, soldier," answered the leader penguin, "right now we have to determine where he last possible confirmed location was."

Private nodded, "He walked out the hatch and I think he was on his way outside."

"Well, then we know he didn't stay nearby. Where does Kowalski like to visit on the outside?" asked Skipper.

Private looked thoughtful. "K'walski doesn't really go anywhere without us," he acknowledged, "he prefers to be here in the HQ most of the time."

Manfredi put a flipper on Skipper's back. "Skipper," he said, "Would not it be more effective to try to find out where these hostile penguins may have taken your friend?"

Skipper thought for a moment. He wondered why he had not thought of that himself. Nodding to Manfredi, he turned his attention to Marlene. "You said you were attacked by that penguin last night, right?"

Marlene nodded, then continued to tell Skipper as quickly as possible the story of the terrifying night the her and penguins had. Private interjected a few times to fill in missing details. Together, they told Skipper and Manfredi that the small penguin they had just seen was Geir, and he was packing that was just pointed at Marlene. They explained how there was a large penguin, even larger than Rico, who was named Thurgo.

"They kidnapped me and took me down to the sewers," explained Marlene, "but left me alone when I made them believe I didn't know you, Skipper."

"Why were they trying to get to me through you?" wondered Skipper.

"Beats me," offered Marlene."

"Wasn't there one more as well, Marlene?" asked Private.

"Oh, yeah," answered Marlene. "They had a leader, who actually looked quite a bit like you, Skipper. He had a flat head like you."

Manfredi's eyes lit up significantly and he rushed up to Marlene, grabbing her arms and startling her. "This penguin... their leader," he said slowly, "what is his name?"

Marlene stuttered slightly, looking into the large penguin's eyes. She couldn't help but see a deep look of hopefulness. "His henchmen called him Sarge," she said simply. Immediately, Manfredi backed off, leaving Marlene to rub her arms where the penguin had gripped them. The large penguin turned to Skipper, eyes glazed over.

"Skipper, do you realize who she is talking about?" he asked simply.

Skipper didn't respond. He knew exactly who Marlene was referencing to. Although his team did not know it, Sarge had once been Manfredi, Johnson and his own Staff Sargent. Skipper recalled only seeing him a handful of times throughout his time in the Pen guin Army; at least until he, Manfredi and Johnson rebelled. Then he saw the penguin's face enough to never forget it. A flat-headed penguin, with blue eyes as deep as his own. Skipper simply nodded to his friend.

Manfredi continued, "I have spent nearly two years searching for my target, and only weeks after finding you, you have led me to him."

Skipper nodded. That means that the penguin that attacked Marlene over a month ago in her habitat was also Sarge. Why didn't he realize that an enemy was so close much sooner?

"Manfredi," spoke Private, "What do you mean 'your target'?"

The large, robot-penguin turned around to look at the much younger penguin. "That is between me and Skipper, Private," he said, glancing over at the flat-headed penguin, "and he will tell you when he is ready."

Private looked hopefully and curiously at his leader. "I'll explain it later, Private. Now is not the best of times," Skipper told him. Private nodded. "We need to find out where Kowalski might be," said Skipper, getting back to business, "Private, didn't you say you were tracking me with some sort of a remote control?"

"Yeah, Skippah," explained the smaller penguin, "At least we were trying to, but you were blocking your signal." He picked up the device and looked at it again. He tapped on the screen of the device. "You know what, I think this may as well be Kowalski's location." Private passed the device to Skipper.

Skipper looked at saw only one dot, moving slowly up a major street through the city. He reached into his bag that Manfredi had set down and pulled out the small radar EMP device. He switched it off, and sure enough, three more dots appeared on the screen in the center of Central Park. He set the jammer down and continued to look at the strange GPS.

"So this is what Alice was using to track us this whole time?" he asked.

"Yes," responded Private, "She knew where we were at all times of the day. We stole it from her office, though, so unless she had another she won't know where we are anymore."

"Well then we need to follow Kowalski's signal to where ever these hostiles are taking him," Skipper concluded. Private nodded. Skipper turned to his ex-teammate. "Want to join us, Manfredi? We could really use your help."

"Rescuing your friend may be the only way I will ever finally reach my target," the large penguin agreed, "and that is all that really matters."

Skipper nodded, then turned to the others to see a mildly uncomfortable look on Private's face. When the small penguin noticed his leader looking at him he cleared it up and gave a slight, awkward smile. He's scared stiff of Manfredi, Skipper thought.

"Guys, Guys," started Marlene suddenly and excitedly. "There's some writing here on the second page that I didn't notice before. I don't think it's Kowalski's writing either." She had removed the feather and was flipping through the pages of the pad on the clipboard. Skipper walked over and Marlene handed him the clipboard. He first noticed a few lines of symbols and words he couldn't understand. There was a crudely drawn picture of some animal over the top of the words. It looked like some type of mammal. Skipper interpreted its meaning though; these hostile penguins wanted him to take it to the chimps so that they could decipher its meaning.

"Alright, team..." his words trailed off as he glanced at Manfredi, "err, men. And... uh well Marlene." We need to take this code to the chimps for decoding. It could contain what these hostiles are demanding for Kowalski."

"Abduction is merely a method of achieving a larger goal," concluded the robot-penguin.

"You're right," Skipper acknowledged, "so lets move out."

* * *

It was a short walk to the chimp's cage from the penguin exhibit. Luckily, the zoo had finally closed down for the night and almost all of the employees had gone home. Without the risk of compromise, the small group of animals could move with ease through the zoo. The sun was now setting low in the sky and the lights of the city had come on. The shadows from the walls of the zoo grew long on the paths. The air was cool and crisp—Skipper knew that autumn was right around the the corner.

The leader penguin watched some pigeons swirl overhead, the remnants of the midday sun glinting back into his eye off of a tall, glass office building. He wondered for a minute why he ever wanted to leave this place forever. Even though it was just a zoo, it had its own sense of unique beauty. It was home, he thought. He noted how hours after he had left his team had been attacked by someone looking for him. It was like some force had been acting against him the whole time. He shook the thoughts from his head—there were much more pressing matters right now.

Skipper looked around at his team; Marlene was still trying to make heads or tails of what she could on the clipboard. Rico was walking in the back of the group, trying to maintain his composure, but Skipper could tell he was worried for Kowalski. Private walked just a little ahead of Skipper, and every once in a while the leader penguin noted his small friend glance towards Manfredi and then towards him. It seemed the penguin insisted on keeping Skipper between himself and Manfredi. He'll have to learn to trust Manfredi soon, thought Skipper.

"Yes, Sir?" said Private when he noticed his superior looking at him.

"What? Oh, nothing, Private. Just thinking," returned Skipper. Private nodded.

Skipper turned away from Private to see a small door at the base of the wall of the chimpanzee exhibit. It was almost like a doggie door, thought Skipper. It was used to easily push plates of food into the exhibit for the only other entry into the enclosure was to climb over the wall with a ladder. Fortunately for the chimps, it had been made much too big and they often unlocked it to explore the zoo with the penguins. Skipper unlatched the door and the animals slid through. What he saw on the other side, though, was not what he expected.

Mason was sitting alone at the chimps' checker board, moving both sets of pieces in no specific order. He was shakily sipping a small teacup and had a tired look on his face.

"Hey Mason," Marlene spoke first, walking up to the light brown furred chimpanzee. Mason did not respond; his back was turned to the otter. "we were wondering if you and Phil could determine what this writing means for us." continued Marlene. She held up to clipboard where the chimp could see it.

Mason did still not respond. He knocked one of the pieces off of the checkers board by accident, but did not reach over to pick it up. It was like he was in a daze.

"Hey, Mason," said Skipper, "did you hear Marlene?"

The leader penguin walked up to the chimp and placed a flipper on his shoulder. Suddenly, Mason whipped his head around and screeched so loud it made Skipper jump back. Mason jumped off his chair and grabbed it. Screaming again, he swung the chair as hard as he could at the penguin, making Skipper roll to dodge out of the way. The mammal took another swing at Skipper, who parried the incoming blow.

"Mason!" shouted Skipper, "Mason it's just me. Skipper!" Mason didn't respond, though. Skipper saw his eyes glazed over like he was in a trance. The chimpanzee screeched again and swung at Skipper, who rolled behind him. To Skipper's surprise, though, he heard a loud crack as the wooden chair splintered into several small pieces.

Skipper turned around to see what had happened. Manfredi had grabbed the chair from the mammal's shaky hands and had thrown it forcefully against the chimps' tree. Mason stood in front of the large penguin, stunned.

"We are not going to hurt you," said Manfredi calmly as if nothing happened. "We only require your help."

Mason blinked a couple of times and then looked at the animals around him. "Oh my," he said, "terribly sorry, ol' fellow." He put a hand to his forehead and sat down in the other, still intact chair.

"What's wrong, Mason, what happened?" asked Skipper, wondering why the chimp had attacked him. Skipper knew Mason was a peaceful animal and he had never seen him attack anything before.

"Oh my," repeated the chimp, "I blacked out. Truly sorry, Skipper."

Skipper gave the Chimp a few seconds to regain his bearings, then asked again, "What happened, Mason?"

"Oh, Skipper!" exclaimed the chimp suddenly, "It was terrifying! There were three penguins that invaded our home and took Phil!"

Skipper heard Marlene and Private gasp. "What?" he asked stupidly.

"They showed up out of nowhere, and when I tried to to fight back, they held a gun into my face," Mason explained, "Then they tied up Phil and ran off with him."

Skipper slapped his head in disbelief. "Why in the world would these penguins want Phil?" he asked to no-one specific.

"No clue," offered Marlene.

"Phil is really the only animal that can read at the zoo," said Private, "maybe they needed something read, Skippah?"

"That doesn't make sense, Private!" said Skipper, frustrated. "They can obviously read and write if they left us this note..." he trailed off as he pointed to the clipboard.

"Wait a second, do you think Phil wrote the note, Skipper?" asked Marlene. Skipper nodded as that was precisely what he was thinking.

"Let me see that clipboard again," he said, holding out a flipper. Marlene handed over the clipboard and Skipper looked at the picture near the top of the second page again. He now noticed something he had not seen before. The crudely drawn animal had a long, curvy tail with several rings scribbled on it. "This isn't Mason," he observed, pointing to the picture, "This is a picture of ring-tail!"

Private slapped his head, "Of course! Skipper, Julien learned to read recently. Phil must have given him lessons."

"The lanky fellow who insists on shouting?" Mason said, now looking very tired, "Yeah, he was stealing us chocolate covered bananas from the food court in exchange for reading and writing lessons from Phil."

"When did you start the lessons?" asked Private.

"Oh, I'd say about two, maybe three weeks ago. Even as obnoxious as he is, Julien is an awfully fast learner."

Skipper looked towards the lemur habitat, where Julien was visible sleeping in his throne. He turned back to the others and said, "Let's go pay ring-tail a little visit, then. He might be the only one who can decode this for us." The leader penguin looked towards the troubled chimpanzee. "Those penguins that kidnapped Mason also kidnapped Kowalski. We're going track them down, though, so we'll get both our boys back."

Mason simply nodded, looking a little more hopeful. Marlene gave him a hug and then the group left to go to the lemur habitat. Using a tunnel entrance, they entered into the so-called kingdom and proceeded to wake the sleeping mammal up.

"Hold on, guys!" said a voice behind them, suddenly. Skipper turned around to see Maurice hurrying up to them. He spoke in a loud whisper. "What are you doing here?"

"We need Julien to read something for us," explained Marlene, holding out the clipboard. Maurice waved his hands.

"You guys need to leave _now_," he urged. "You can't wake up King Julien!"

"Why not?" asked Skipper, arching a brow.

"He's taking his beauty nap. He'll flip out if you wake him up now," explained the wide lemur.

Marlene scoffed. "Maurice, Kowalski and Mason have been kidnapped and this note might be our only way of getting them back."

Maurice went wide eyed with surprise. "Oh, uh, sorry. I didn't know. Follow me, I'll go wake him up."

Skipper nodded, Maurice started walking, but as he spotted Manfredi he stopped. "Who are you?" he asked.

"A friend." explained the robot-penguin simply. Maurice looked to Skipper for approval, who nodded. Maurice shrugged and began leading the group to the sleeping king. After throwing a tantrum for being woken up before he was 'rested', Julien noticed the penguins and Marlene standing near him. Skipper introduced Manfredi before explaining their situation.

"Aha!" exclaimed Julien, "If I was there, none of de fishy penguins would be stealing de other fishy penguin, no?" He formed fists with his hands and began striking the air. "I scared one of dem away; I could scare dem all away."

Skipper shook his head. "We just need you to decode this message for us, Ring-tail," he requested. "We heard you learned to read from Phil."

"I assure you de king was learning by himself," he told, taking the clipboard from Skipper, "but despite your insult, I will still read what de fishy penguin has to say." Normally, Skipper would shoot something back toward the lemur king at this point, like a remark on how annoying he was. Now was not the time to get into that kind fight, though. Julien began reading the paper, although he read it word by word and it sounded very rough. Even though, Skipper and the others understood their meaning.

"'If this mess-age reach you, Julien, please read it to de penguins. Kow-a-ski and I have been cap-ture-ded by three crazy penguins. They have not told us what they want with us yeet, al-though their leader said, 'We only need you to solve a rid-dle.' Don't wo-orry, they have not harm-ded us at all yeet and are only leading us though de sew-wers. They said, how-wever, that they will be taking us to Ant-tar-tica to solve dis rid-dle unless Skipper come and gives them de ans-wer. They said to meet at the har-bor at mid-night tonight with de answer, or else they're going to take us to Ant-tar-tica. If we can't solve de rid-dle there, they will _dis-pose_ of us. I hope you penguins know where Skipper is, because Kow-a-ski said he left fore-ever.'"

Julien concluded with a "So de smart fishy-penguin and funky monkey have been..._ kidnapped!_" He put emphasis on the last word like the rest of the animals didn't already know. Skipper shook his head.

"Well we know what they want now," he said to himself.

"We've got to go to the dock, Skippah!" instructed Private, "We can't let them take Kowalski and Phil all the way to Antartica. You'll have to give them the information they need."

Skipper gave the young penguin a glare that made him regret saying that. "We're not going to give them anything they want, soldier," he said, glancing at Manfredi when he said 'soldier', "but we are still going to get our boys back."

"Skipper, don't you remember? They have weapons." said Marlene.

Skipper realized this. But he also knew that he couldn't give them the information they sought; the answer to the riddle. The answer was the key to a much greater weapon, one that he had saved the world from once already. "We'll get some of our own," he finally offered back, although he knew that their secret panel had already been cleared out and he had no idea what they were going to use. Rico was resourceful, he thought.

"De king will be happy to help you on your rescue mission," announced Julien, as though he was waiting to be invited, "I beat that evil fishy penguin once, I will be doing it again." He brought his fists up and began striking the air. Skipper saw Maurice slap his forehead and sigh.

"That won't fly, ring-tail," he responded, "This is between us," he gestured to himself, Manfredi , Rico and Private, "and those maniacal penguins."

Julien crossed his arms. "Maybe de king shouldn't have read de note for you then."

"No offense, Julien, but you have been more of a nuisance than a help on our previous missions," explained Private.

"What about de time I saved you from de crazy toy factory?" whined Julien.

"You saved us from the situation_ you _gotus in," shot Skipper, "We would have been fine without you."

"Hmph, I was thinking I was doing a pretty good job," muttered Julien, then threw the clipboard on the ground and walked away.

"Are you sure you don't want us to come with, Skipper?" asked Maurice.

"Positive, Maurice," responded the flat-headed penguin, "but you can still help us by trying to keep Alice busy. She's up to something, and you can help by keeping her off our backs. Try to keep her in the zoo as long as possible."

Maurice nodded, then went off to find the sulking Julien. Skipper knew that Alice would be after them as soon as she realized they were no longer in the zoo. Even though, he knew that rescuing Kowalski and Mason was more imperative than being stealthy at this point.

* * *

The sun was now fully down and the zoo was illuminated only by a half-full moon and the city lights around it. The four penguins stood at the gate of the zoo, ready to leave. They stood across from Marlene, who was still holding the clipboard from when she had picked it up. Skipper opened the painting-made-door that covered the secret passageway out of the zoo.

The penguins had packed some basic supplies. Being resourceful, Skipper had put the rest of their cans of tuna into a few bags for the penguins to carry. Other than that, they didn't have much. Because Alice had taken all of their equipment and gadgets, they were going almost defenseless. The only thing she knew they had was a knife she had seen Manfredi slide into his backpack. She knew the penguins were more than capable in hand-to-hand combat, though. Private held onto the GPS tracking device that showed Kowalski's location; the key to his rescue.

Skipper signaled to the other penguins that it was time to go, and one by one they entered the tunnel. They're going out into the world, Marlene thought, on an adventure. They were going to rescue their friends from those evil penguins. Marlene hated those penguins. She wanted to go with the penguins, to help them rescue Kowalski and Phil. She didn't say anything to Skipper though, in fear of what she knew he would say back.

_"Ooh, sounds exciting. Can I come?" She recalled all the times she had asked him that question in the past._

_"Uh, Marlene," Skipper began, sounding serious, "We're going outside of the zoo." _

_"Oh," the otter responded simply, crestfallen and knowing exactly why Skipper was so skeptical about letting her outside of the gates again._

Last time she had been outside of the zoo, it had been the first time she had been outside of the zoo since she was brought to Central Park. Only a few steps outside the walls, she recalled feeling so free, so alive, and so full of energy. That was the last thing she remembered, the next thing being trapped in a cage with Skipper telling her that she had flipped out and attacked them, while also falling in love with Julien. Now every time she asked to go with Skipper on an adventure, he declined. She knew she would be able to control her emotions now though; being in the sewers and on missions with the penguins around the zoo had helped that. She was afraid to convince the leader penguin that she could, though.

"We'll be back as soon as we can, Marlene," said Skipper, breaking her momentary trance.

"What? Oh, yeah," responded the otter, "Good luck."

Skipper nodded, then began making his way through the passageway. Suddenly, Marlene said, "Skipper, wait!"

Skipper turned around. Marlene felt her works get stuck in her throat. "Be safe," was all she could think to say.

"Thanks, Marlene." returned the leader penguin before he disappeared as he closed the painting on the opposite side of the passage.

Marlene stood there near the entrance for a few minutes, cursing herself for not going with the penguins. It was her opportunity for adventure, to help the penguins rescue their, and her, friends. She knew she could help them too, even though she was not a fighter. She had some sort of connection to those penguins; after being tied up in the sewer she saw how they worked. Thurgo did not get along so well with Sarge, who was commanding altogether. With all the confusion, she had not been able to tell Skipper about it either.

As she thought about these things, she felt a sudden feeling rise inside of her. She couldn't quite understand it, but it was like the walls of the zoo were closing in on her. She felt like she needed to get out; needed to go catch up to the penguins. She turned around and looked around the zoo; nobody was watching her.

Without taking another moment to think about it, she dropped the clipboard and rushed through the passageway. She didn't know if she would break down when she stepped outside again. If she didn't, she didn't know how to find the penguins.

She didn't care, though; she did it. She was going on an adventure, and nothing was going to stand in her way.

Meanwhile, King Julien peaked out from behind a nearby bush. Noticing that the coast was clear, he followed the otter into the night.

* * *

**~( Author's Note )~**

This chapter is terribly long! I hope it was at least entertaining. Let me know if you liked it, because a lot of stuff happened story-wise.

**Here's some random facts:**

- Most experts agree that your average paperback novel has about 250 words per page. This story would nearly be a **250 page novel**. And its barely half done!  
- With this chapter I become one of only a few PoM authors to break **60,000 words**  
- Roughly estimated, I've written **145** words per day since I started this story. Breakneck speed, eh?  
- This story broke **5,000 hits **not too long ago. Thanks for all the intrest!  
- My writing style had changed dramatically from the beginning of this story. You can probally tell.

Hope you're enjoying the story and please review!


	27. Interference

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 27 - Interference**

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* * *

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Alice couldn't believe her eyes. Over the last twenty four hours she had been watching the footage that had been received from the Cyclops Invisible Eye System implanted in the penguins. The footage was so unbelievable that she had to rewind it more than one time just to make sure she wasn't watching some sort of cheesy animated film. To just think that these incredible penguins had been living in her zoo without so much more than a hunch from her was inconceivable at this point.

Alice recalled watching programs on the Discovery and Animal channels when she was younger. The showed penguins living in Antarctica, huddling together for warmth. She saw small, tropical penguins that swam in the Caribbean ocean. She even saw penguins in other zoos gathering around the food bowl. She had always thought those penguins were as stupid as any other animal on the planet; surviving only because of their God-given instincts. Yeah, she had seen the way they interact in groups, such as Antarctic penguins carrying ever-so-rare pebbles to their mates to impress them. She had honestly thought that they were merely copying human tendencies—similar to the way a cockatoo mocks the way people talk. She thought that the penguins did it only because it was primal instinct.

She wondered now if she was wrong to think that. Her penguins, as slippery and mischievous as they were, were some of the most advanced creatures she had ever had the ability to observe. Hell, from what she saw they were more intelligent then half of the zookeepers she had hired. Even in the first few hours of the footage she had witnessed more from each penguin's first person view than she had noticed of them in their entire time at the zoo.

Shortly after she had begun to watch the videos she had watched the penguin's participate in some sort of a training session. She had watched it from the flat-headed penguin's point of view. She had always had a sort of governing air about him; the other penguins had always followed his actions without hesitation. Waiting to eat until he directed them towards the fish, waving only after they had witnessed him wave. Now she was watching them flip, punch, kick and do moves she only thought was possible in a Jackie Chan movie. It was difficult for her to follow what was going on, with the blurriness of the camera from the flat-headed penguin's rapid movements as well as those of the other penguins, but she could still make out most of it.

While watching these training sessions, Alice began to comprehend the way the penguins communicated. While she could not understand the clicks, purrs and coos of the birds she made out facial expressions, flipper gestures, and body language very similar to what one would see in another person. By analyzing these interactions she deduced that each penguin in her zoo had some sort of role. The leader gave the orders, the strategist gave feedback, the soldier diligently obeyed the orders, and the... well, she hadn't quite found a role for the heavyset penguin, tongue lolling out the side of his mouth, but she was sure it had something to do with the weapons she had his stomach pumped for not too long ago.

The weapons were still laying on a table near her, most of them still wrapped in plastic bags. The majority of them were unconventional: a wooden sword, a baseball bat, a hammer. Some had her more worried such as the flamethrower and several sticks of dynamite. She wondered where in the world her penguins would have gotten their hands on these things. She herself didn't even know where to go to buy dynamite... or even a flamethrower for that matter. At first she had thought her heavyset penguin had merely swallowed these things by some freak chance, but judging by their advanced training sessions and the fact that nearly everything was a weapon worried her. Had her penguins really been out to get her since day one?

Her next shock came when her Asian Otter came into the penguins' habitat one evening after the zoo was closed. She had always known the penguins were up to something, but she had never even thought that her other animals may be in on it as well. The otter and the penguins conversed for a while, in a way she could not seem to understand. Clicks were met by growls. Purrs were met by coos. Even though, the human-like gestures were still there. Alice could have sworn she even saw the otter put her paws on her hips at one point. Later in the video the flat-headed penguin put some items in a bag and slung it over his back, but was met by her tall, proclaimed lemur-king. So her lemurs were in on this as well? She wondered for a while if all of her animals had fallen in some radioactive goo and were growing more intelligent by the second.

The lemur's party had completely blown her away. That evening she remembered barely seeing the lights and hearing the music, but her memories were cloudy from her blackout. In the morning it had all been gone. To think that lemurs had broken into zoo storage, taken the lights out and hung them up would have been too much for her to believe if she had not already seen the penguins' training sessions.

Something interesting happened next, though. The penguin she had identified as the leader of the group seemed to be on his way out of the zoo, while the three others were on their way to the Lemur's habitat. The penguin activated some sort of device on the screen, and the video ended for him. One of Mr. Green's interns concluded that it was a EMP emitter, or something to block the signal of the CIES. He also mentioned that it was the last recorded footage from that penguin. Alice couldn't believe how smart these little buggers were. They were even aware that something was tracking them.

After watching the other penguin's videos for some time without anything much interesting happening, she heard a strange noise from one of the videos. After rewinding it and turning up the volume, it sounded like a faint scream. She thought it might have been a bird until she replayed it one more time and identified it as her own voice. That was the exact moment that she was attacked! The video proved that her penguins were not to blame. Even though, Alice wondered why in the world she was attacked by those marauding penguins anyway. She could have sworn the flat-headed penguin that attacked her was her own leader-penguin, though. Did he block his signal so he could team up with some other penguins and attack her?

The next part of the video proved that theory wrong. Unable to wrap her head around what was going on, Alice witnessed the three penguins with active video feeds all get ambushed by the same penguins that attacked her. She had no clue why her own leader-penguin would attack his own, but the idea of him being the attacker never left her mind. What frightened her though was the sight of the small, rock hopper penguin holding a rifle. She rubbed where her leg still stung and concluded that she had been shot by it.

After this event the penguins stayed tied up for a while, until her otter came into the penguin's habitat again, her fur looking ruffled. She untied the penguins and they... conversed... for a while but nothing much happened. Eventually, the tall penguin stormed out of the habitat where Alice watched him get attacked yet again by the rock-hopper penguin with the rifle. The last thing she saw from his camera before a bag was placed over his head was a slight glimpse of a chimpanzee. It didn't take her long to realize that this was her own chimpanzee, particularly the one that always seems to hit her in the back of her head with poo. She rubbed the spot thinking about why these psychotic penguins would want anything to do with her chimp.

She then watched the two remaining penguin videos until there was a missing few minutes of video. Mr. Green said that the flat-headed leader-penguin returned to the habitat with his signal-jammer in operation, but he soon turned it off. Alice was greeted with the sight of a robot penguin... thing. At least she thought it was a penguin, but to her it looked more like the evil robot from _Terminator_. Red eye, robotic flipper, and a stone-faced disposition to top it off. Shivers ran up her spine thinking about it, although the animals on the screen seemed to welcome it somewhat warmly. This was important though because she concluded that the leader-penguin was not the one leading the penguin marauders.

Now Alice and Mr. Green sat at a table watching the two remaining penguin feeds, Alice having smashed the leader's feed by this point. The tall penguin's feed remained dark, but Alice could hear slight things such as waves crashing against rocks and seagulls. The pair concluded that this penguin had been taken to the docks. The other penguin's monitors showed them gearing up to leave the zoo, probably after their stolen friend.

"What in the world should we do now?" Alice asked, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms. "They got my penguin, my chimp, and the rest of my animals are running after them."

Mr. Green nodded. "These videos have shown us your penguins are very capable of defending themselves. I say we sit back and let them work it out."

Alice slammed a fist on the table. "That's all you ever want to do, Andy, is sit back and watch. We have to _do_ something about this. You saw what happened before, didn't you? My penguins got destroyed by those other penguins, for whatever the reason they weren't just killed there. They're definitely walking into a death trap!"

"Now, Alice," responded the stout man calmly, "You know we can't interfere here. Our actions at this point in time would draw too much attention to these penguins."

Alice grumbled. "They're leaving the zoo, Andy. If they get caught out in the city you know those animal freaks will have my neck. Right now doing _nothing_ is pointless. They got my chimp, too, y'know. I payed four thousand freaking dollars for that thing."

"And I will have to pay four million dollars in lawsuits if someone finds the CIES," returned Mr. Green, "You have to understand, Alice, that we can't make the risk of interfering."

"We can't just sit on our asses, though!" shouted Alice, "At the very least we have to... go help them or something."  
Mr. Green raised an eyebrow. "Are you developing a soft spot for your animals, Alice?"

Alice thought about this question for a few moments before responding. She had always been the kind of person who hated her work; hated the animals and hated the people. Those were pretty much the only two reasons to run a zoo. After seeing the intelligence that her penguins and otter hold, though, she realized that something much bigger was going on in her zoo.

She sighed, "They money, Andy. All I care about is the money. The penguin was writing on a clipboard, Andy, a clipboard! Imagine how many people would come to Central Park Zoo if they knew there were penguins that could do karate and what not. The publicity would put my zoo on the map, and the funding and sales would shoot up."

Mr. Green smiled, "So you want to go catch these penguins?"

"I can't let opportunities like this pass."

The businessman stood up. "Without the GPS tracker it will be harder to hunt them down, but we can use the monitors to try to identify local landmarks on where they are."

Alice smiled, happy Mr. Green saw it her way. "Well we know they're headed for the docks."

"We will just have to cut them off at some point then, won't we?"

* * *

**/AN: **Merry Christmas everyone! I know it's been a month and a half, but I definetly wanted to get out a little Christmas treat for you guys! I hope everyone enjoys thier Christmas and has a great new year! **:AN\**


	28. Conflict

Skipper's Log. 18:00 Hours on August the twenty sixth.

_"We've been AWOL for about twenty four hours now. When I woke up this morning I still heard the oh-six-hundred bell and could have sworn I was in my bunk at the base. It's a strange feeling, being a wanted penguin. I'm worried, yet determined. I'm scared but ready to fight. Part of me wants to give up and turn myself in, part of me wants to stay on the move. Regardless, we've got a long road ahead of us._

_ "Manfredi finally gave us the full story this morning. The Penguin Army that we had been a part of was legitimate, we were a fighting force destined to go to war eventually. Unfortunately, we had mostly been left in the dark about what we were fighting for and why. Manfredi explained that our leader, a corrupt penguin named Sargent Caspian Fishslader , was only using us to invade a small settlement in Antarctica. Apparently, there is a temple at that location that contains an artifact with more power than any other thing on Earth. That would not be much to worry about, but this Fishslader character wants to use the artifact to, in essence, bring the entire Earth to its knees. I'm not sure exactly how, but we can't let him get his dirty flippers on it._

_ "Manfredi mentioned that, in the briefing rooms, he had overheard their suggested plan of attack. It would lead us right through a small penguin settlement on the continent, which is unfortunately also Manfredi's home. He told us about his fiancee and child, and then told us what else had been said at the meetings. Manfredi had suggested to his superiors that they go around the settlement or merely pass through, as the inhabitants would not be hostile to them. Sargent Fishslader ignored him and instructed that every penguin found would be killed. Manfredi asked why, and Fishslader only said "We can't risk compromise." _

_ "That was the night Manfredi said he was taken to be executed, because he continued to argue with Flshslader and the other superiors. He explained how he barely escaped with his life. He said he felt the wind of a bullet that flew right by his head. I don't know what it's like to come that close to dieing, and I hope I never find out._

_ "As for us, we're camped out in the woods only a couple hundred yards from the penguin fortress. We spent the rest of the day planning out a route of attack into the fortress, scrutinizing maps of the infrastructure that Manfredi had managed to snag before he left. Our plan is simple: get the work around the ranks that the men are only being used. We're headed straight for the briefing room where Manfredi says the radio system exists for the entirety of the establishment. Unfortunately, that puts us right in the belly of the beast._

_ "I asked Manfredi if he would kill the Sarge if he got the opportunity to. He didn't respond."_

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness**

**Chapter 28 – Conflict**

** The three penguins stood around Skipper awaiting his plans to rescue Kowalski and Phil.**

Skipper had gone ahead for a little while to see what the dock looked like. At his feet were some bits of thread, rocks and a few pieces of paper that made a rough map of what the dock looked like. It was a large, wide dock used mainly for large shipping barges that carried goods overseas. Skipper began explaining the plan.

"I will enter the dock this way," he pointed to the south end of the dock, "where, if Sarge is where he said he'll be, will put me in plain sight of them. They won't try anything with me right off the bat because I have the information they need. If they see me alone, they might put their guard down.

"Rico, you will swim underneath the docks here," the leader penguin pointed to the northern tip of the dock, "and Private will take position on the deck of this nearby ship," he pointed in the open space, also north of the dock. "When I give the signal to you, Private, you will signal to Rico who will be in the water. He won't be able to see me, so make sure he can see you."

Private asked, "What is the signal, Skippah?"

"I will turn around, away from Sarge, and cross my arms. That's when you signal Rico and move in. Rico, I want you to climb the dock from the far end and flank the enemy." Private and Rico nodded. Skipper turned to Manfredi. "Manfredi, I want you to try your best not to be seen and sneak as close as possible to where I will be. When they come after me, I want you to be there to back me up."

"Skipper," objected the robotic penguin, "would it not make more sense for me to accompany you along the dock?"  
"Negative," the leader responded, "Right now Sarge and his boys don't know that you exist. Think of yourself as a sort of secret weapon." Manfredi nodded in understanding, though Skipper could not help but catch a glimpse of disagreement in his movement.

With the leader penguin's plan set in place, the penguin team moved into their positions. Surprisingly, when the penguins arrived at the aforementioned dock, Sarge and his henchmen were nowhere to be found. Private and Rico looked around curiously, and Skipper reminded them to stay on their toes; the enemy could be anywhere. They agreed and moved to their positions, realizing the coast was clear for now. Manfredi used the time to fashion himself a small hiding place from a pile of rope and a few fishnets. Skipper felt confident; they had the advantage of surprise. Of course, he was still not sure if the other penguins were really going to show up, or not.

The group stayed in their hiding places for some time as the sun began to set behind the tall buildings of the city. They cast long, ominous shadows on the dock where Skipper stood. He felt a yawn coming on but ruffled his feathers slightly to avoid doing so. His eyes continued to scan the edges of the dock the see if the enemy was going to arrive anytime soon.

Finally, as he watched the sun explode into a mass of fiery red colors, a dark looking penguin rounded a pile of boxes and waddled onto the dock. He walked slowly, and from what Skipper could see, was entirely alone. He also looked unarmed. Skipper gritted his beak slightly. His eyes shifted from to Private, who was skillfully hiding behind a low wall on the ship nearby, to Manfredi, who shifted slightly in his rope hiding place. He heard a small splash that could have only been Rico.

The penguin approached Skipper, stopping about fifty feet from him. He wasn't close enough to Manfredi to do anything yet.

Skipper stared at Sarge for a few moments. Skipper noted his left eye. The long scar had not been there the last time they had spoke. He briefly wondered if Manfredi had done it. From the corner of his eye, Skipper saw the robot-penguin shift again in his hiding place. Finally, Sarge broke the silence.

"Prudent as always, Skipper?" he said. Skipper recognized the penguin's voice, but at the same time it sounded like it had changed. It was almost as if it had grown darker with time. Skipper remained solemn faced.

"Looks like time hasn't been kind to you at all, Fishslader." he responded smartly.

Sarge chuckled, "I've been through a bit." Skipper's facade remained unchanged.

"Where's Phil and Kowalski?" he asked, not wanting to waste any more time.

"That was always like you, Skipper, straight to the point. You didn't give us any time to catch up!" The dark penguin slowly began moving to Skipper's left, keeping his distance and moving further away from Manfredi's hiding place. "I have just one question for you before I will return your soldiers to you."

Skipper gritted his beak hard. "No answers until my boys are back safe at the zoo."

"Ah, Skipper, good to see you have not changed a bit. Unmoving as always. It seems like I should have promoted _you_ to Corporal instead of that idiot Manfredi..." The penguin took a few more steps away from where Manfredi was hiding but closer to Skipper.

"Why did you come alone?" Skipper responded, trying to focus on the matter at hand. "Where are your henchmen?"  
Sarge held up a flipper, "I only wanted to catch up with an old friend alone. Is that such a bad thing?"  
"I was never your friend," returned Skipper.

Sarge looked bewildered for a moment. "Don't you remember the time when Manfredi was appointed Corporal? He was very proud, wasn't he?"

"What are you talking about? That was the most stupid ceremony I ever saw. You didn't even pronounce his name correctly." Skipper said.

"Ah, but your one little friend... the younger of you three. What was his name? He corrected me, did he not?" Skipper saw Manfredi shift slightly again, though Sarge did not take notice of it.

"Johnson?" offered the leader penguin.

"Yes, yes! That little puffball of a penguin. I always remembered that he was the weakest of you three."

"What does this have to do with Kowalski and Phil?" interrupted Skipper, shaking his head.

"Nothing, really. Just wanted to share some memories with an old friend. Old teammates from the army, you know." Skipper stayed quiet. "Ah yes, Johnson... the youngest and weakest of beta squad. Naïve and stupid, to be honest..."

Sarges eyes shifted to Manfredi's hiding place for only a moment, but it was enough to give away that he was aware of the robot-penguin's presence. Skipper realized he didn't have much time left to act.

"... I still can't believe I got him to trust me. After all I had done," Skipper clenched his beak. "And in the end I still stabbed him in the..."

Suddenly Skipper heard a deep, shrill cry from his left. Manfredi had burst out of his hiding place and was charging directly at Sarge. From what Skipper could see his eyes were cloudy and tears were running down his feathered face.

"I'll kill you! I'll kill you!" shouted the enraged machine-bird. Clutched in his flipper was the crooked, rusty dagger.

"Manfredi, no!" Skipper cried, but if fell on deaf ears. He spun around and, forgetting the signal, waved his flippers over his head to try to signal Private. The specialist was no longer on the boat but Skipper only assumed that he had moved into action when he saw Manfredi charge.

Skipper spun back around just in time to see Manfredi raise the dagger and try to stab Sarge with all of his force behind it. Sarge, who did not look surprised at all, simply parried the incoming blow. Manfredi was not expecting this and tripped, tumbling over himself and stabbing the dagger hard into the wood of the dock. Skipper moved to help his ex-teammate.

The robot-penguin was already back on his feet, however, and was charging Sarge again, this time without the knife. He curled his flipper into a ball and raised it over his head, attempting to smash it down upon his foe. Sarge smirked slightly and raised his own flippers over his head, blocking the seemingly powerful blow with ease and counterattacking Manfredi with a kick to the stomach. Manfredi wheezed and stumbled backwards. He clenched his flippers back into fists and charged one more time.

"Manfredi, that's not working!" warned Skipper, but Manfredi did not react to it. He pulled back his flipper and swung it at Sarge, who again parried the punch, but this time grabbed Manfredi's flipper and twisted him into a powerful arm lock. Manfredi yelped in pain.

"I'm happy to see you, too," wheezed the ex-sargent, out of breath from the engagement.

"I finally found you," grunted Manfredi, "and I am going to kill you for what you did to my loved ones."

"Save the sappy speeches, Manfredi," returned Sarge, "You aren't going to do anything right now." Manfredi yelped again and Sarge twisted his flipper tighter into the lock.

"You scream an awful lot like Johnson, do you know that?" continued Sarge. This enraged Manfredi even more and he let loose another deep cry. Skipper had now caught up to the two but stopped as Sarge's eyes made contact with his own.

"Skipper, stay where you are unless you want some bad things to happen to your other teammates as well." explained Sarge.

"What? We came here alone, just me and Manfredi," lied Skipper.

"Oh?" laughed the scarred penguin, "You might want to stop lying to me if you want everyone to leave this place with their lives, Skipper."

Just then, Sarge's henchmen, Thurgo and Geir, rounded a set of tall crates, and to Skipper's horror, dragged behind them two bound and struggling penguins. Private and Rico were tied together with rope and their beaks were wrapped in duct tape. Rico was making loud grunting noises. Thurgo had an evil grin on his face and Geir looked solemn-faced, but he held his rifle in his flippers. Skipper gasped as the barrel was aimed in his direction.

"Now that we're on common ground, Mr. Leader, would you kindly tell me what I want to know?" asked Sarge. Skipper was dumbfounded. How did they find Rico and Private so easily?

"I don't even know what you want to know." returned Skipper, unsure on how else to continue. He felt fear begin to rise in his throat and his heart was racing as he glanced at the rifle aimed at him.

"I'll help you with that." offered Sarge. "Two years ago three little, innocent penguin soldiers decided to go AWOL and take on an entire army of penguins. One was the leader, one was the diligent soldier, and one," he tightened his arm lock on Manfredi again, "was the lovable oaf. Now, these three little penguins managed to find their way into one little temple where an unimaginable power was being held.

"Now there is a certain way into this temple... one that involves a riddle with a certain answer. One that I could never figure out. Do you want to know what the moral of my story is?"  
Skipper lowered his brow, knowing where this was going.

"'When three become one, the path to enlightenment will open and the sun will rise again.' What is the answer, Skipper?"

"I have no clue what you are talking about." Skipper lied, trying not to show his fear on his face. He was shaking slightly and could hear his heart pounding in his ears.

"Well, Skipper," continued Sarge, "A little birdy told me otherwise. One named Johnson."

"Skipper! Don't tell him!" Manfredi cried. Tears continued to streak down his face.

Sarge looked at the weeping penguin and leaned closely into his face, then whispered, "Johnson didn't tell me. And we know what happened to him..."

At that moment Manfredi managed to free a single flipper, and quickly used it to elbow Sarge in the abdomen as hard as he possibly could. Sarge let go of Manfredi's other flipper and stumbled back, clutching his stomach. Then, before Skipper could blink, Manfredi tackled the Sargent and began pummeling his face.

"Gier, do something!" Sarge shouted, attempting to deflect some of the enraged robot-penguin's blows. Skipper saw the rock-hopper point his rifle in Manfredi's direction. Skipper realized that he had an opening and charged the small penguin, knocking the rifle out of Geir's flippers before he had a chance to line up a shot. Unfortunately for Skipper, Thurgo was unhindered by this process and managed to land a powerful hit on the side of Skipper's head, dazing him and knocking him to the ground.

Skipper's vision cleared and he got up. He saw Geir picking up his rifle and Thurgo running quickly to help Sarge. Skipper again moved to attack the small rock-hopper, but this time his punch was blocked by his more-ready opponent. Gier then dropped his rifle, and without saying word, attacked Skipper, using a variety of punches and kicks. Skipper, being well versed in hand-to-hand combat, easily blocked the blows and used an opportunity to trip the small penguin.

Meanwhile, however, Manfredi had been pulled off of Sarge by Thurgo and was now attempting to land a few hits on the large penguin, who, though he was big, managed to block all of Manfredi's rage-filled punches and kicks. Sarge was dazed and slowly got up now that he was free of his attacker.

Skipper used the moment of time while Gier rolled to get up after being tripped to run and grab the penguin's rifle. Skipper had remembered using rifles like this years ago during his time with Manfredi and Johnson, and though this was an older model, it was like an old glove to him. He quickly lined up a shot directed towards the small rock-hopper penguin, causing him to jump behind a nearby crate for cover.

Manfredi, however, managed to land a few hits on Thurgo who stumbled and was stunned for a minute. The robot-penguin knew that his opponent's guard was down and hit him with a powerful roundhouse to the chest. Thurgo fell back a few feet, coughing for breath.

Manfredi then turned his attention on Sarge, who had made his way to the other side of the dock and was now working his way back to where the fighting was. He held a strange, black device in his flipper that he must have produced from one of the crates there.

Skipper was rounding the crate that Geir was hiding behind, trying to force him out from his cover. He had the rifle held against his shoulder and was peering down the sight. To his surprise, however, the rock-hopper was no longer behind the crate. Before Skipper could even think where he went, however, the small penguin landed on his back, having jumped off a tall crate behind the leader penguin. Skipper was knocked to the ground and the rifle rolled out of his flipper. However, he quickly rolled over, forcing the smaller penguin off of him.

Manfredi had made his way over to the knife that was still imbedded in the wood of the dock and yanked it out. Then he charged toward Sarge, who smirked at his enraged scream. Skipper, who had now recovered from Geir's sneak attack, caught a glimpse of his friend's charge. All to quickly, however, Sarge held up his strange device, Skipper heard a sound of electricity, and then the air went quiet for a moment. Manfredi shook violently. He had a look on his face of shock and surprise before he fell to the ground, unconscious. Skipper had seen this weapon before: it was a tazer.

In the meantime Geir had recovered his rifle and was now aiming it at the defenseless Skipper. Rico and Private were still bound and Rico was struggling helplessly against the tightly knotted rope. With Manfredi now unconscious, Skipper was out of options.

Sarge now strolled casually over to the leader penguin, having handed his tazer to Thurgo. Skipper noted the rusted dagger Manfredi had been holding in his flipper only a minute ago. Sarge was now twirling it with his flipper, being careful not to contact the blade.

"Now that everyone is quiet and happy, you can tell me the answer to this little riddle, I hope?" Sarge gestured to the two bound penguins and the unconscious Manfredi.

Skipper lowered his brow angrily. "You'll never get the information out of me."

"Ah Skipper. So determined and confident." Sarge now stood only an arm's length from the flat-headed penguin. "Do you know how bad I want this information?"

Skipper said nothing. "Let me tell you what I had to go through to get here," continued the ex-Sargent.

"After you blew up my base and left me trapped inside to die, I had to get started again from scratch. First I busted out of that prison you left me in, utilizing little Johnson as a means to escape. He was so gullible, offering the one way out to me. Thought I would return with help sometime." Sarge adjusted his eyes to look directly into Skipper's. "I liked the way he gurgled when I stabbed him..." Skipper shivered. Sarge began pacing around, a small smirk upon his face.

"After I got out of that mangled metal mess, I began looking for someone to help me, some allies if you will. I was lost in Denmark, not sure where to begin. I ran into Geir in one of the tiny penguin settlements on the coastline. In his possession he had one of my older models of rifles,

something I knew he could have only gotten by sneaking into my base. He was willing to go with me though, but I can't say I know exactly where his loyalty comes from." Geir didn't even move his eyes from Skipper, but nodded slowly, as if in approval.

"Geir and I made our way around Europe for the next year, presumably while you were making your way to America. We picked up Thurgo while in Paris, seeing if we could find any clue as to where you went. He was a bit of a sewer lover; stayed with the local gators."

"They were me mum and dad... adopted of course," added Thurgo.

"Anyway, our first clue to your whereabouts came about six months later while waiting in the air shafts of an airport to ride in the luggage compartment of a plane to Egypt. I spotted you on a show on the television; a nature show mentioning that new penguins had just moved into Central Park zoo. You looked tired, sick, and like you hadn't eaten in weeks. They talked about how they had found you in a subway station, and had no clue on how you got there.

"Needless to say we didn't board that plane to Egypt. It took longer than I had liked to get to you, we even found our way to Jamaica accidentally on a shipping barge that had a change of route. Now however, we're here, and although I no longer have my army, I've got you right where I want you.

"Skipper, I didn't want it to have to go this way..." Sarge turned his back to Skipper and began walking towards the bound Private and Rico. "But since you won't cooperate, I'll just start killing off your friends one by one until you talk."

Skipper gasped. "No, you can't do that!"

"Can't I?" In a flash Sarge rose the knife above his head and then drove it down at a cowering Private. The small penguin whimpered and tried to move away from the knife, though he was still bound.

"No!" shouted Skipper, falling to his knees in desperation. He heard Private yelp through his gag and expected the worst. When Sarge moved out of the way, however, he saw Private alive, though he had a three inch gash across his face that was already beginning to bleed. Private's eyes welled up and he was screaming, and Rico began to struggle desperately against his restraints again.

"That is your warning, Skipper. Do not test me." Sarge tossed the knife from hand to hand. "Now, will you tell me?"

"I... I..." Skipper choked with fear. He knew if he told Sarge the answer to the riddle it would spell doom for the rest of the world. Sarge would get his hands on the Sun and it would result in him gaining the ultimate power... Earth's life energy. If he didn't speak now his friends would be killed. If he tried to save them he would be shot and they would all die. Wait, he thought, they won't kill me because I know what they want to know. _ If they kill me, they'll never know_. He knew it would give him a little bit of free will to attack, as Gier would not shoot him... at least not fatally. There was no way he could take on three penguins though, and would probably be immobilized in no time. That would make Sarge more angry and result in him loosing his patience. Skipper didn't know what to do.

"So, are you going to tell me now, or does this little one need a premature death?" Sarge pointed the dagger in Private's face, causing him to struggle and scream through the duct tape.

Just then, Skipper looked up. To his surprise, a brown figure was on top of a stack of crates, struggling with an even taller stack of crates. Trying not to give away that she was there by looking directly out her, Skipper noticed that it was Marlene! For a moment Skipper wondered how she even got here... but was thankful to see her. She was going to tip the heavy crates on top of the unsuspecting Thurgo and Sarge who were standing side by side. Unfortunately, however, Private and Rico would also be squished if she tipped them now.

Fortunately she acknowledged that Skipper now knew that she was there. She pointed toward Private and Rico, as if gesturing him to move them out of the way when she tipped the crates. Skipper nodded slowly, and Marlene nodded, waving. Unfortunately, Sarge had finally noticed that Skipper was no longer focused on him.

"What are you looking at?" he said, spinning around. Marlene dashed behind the stack of crates and managed to not be seen.

"Nothing." said Skipper, now more confident, "So what was the riddle again? I seem to have forgotten."

Sarge spun back around. Marlene moved back into position, nodding in Skipper's direction that she was ready to topple the crates. "'When three become one, the path to enlightenment will open and the sun will rise again.'"

Marlene began pushing the crates as hard as she could. Skipper saw them come dangerously close to falling, and decided it was time to make his move. Without speaking, he bolted towards Sarge and Thurgo, not even afraid that Gier would attempt to shoot him in the back. Sarge looked confused for a moment but then reacted accordingly to Skipper's charge. He attempted a sweep kick to knock Skipper off of his feet, but Skipper foresaw the move coming. He jumped off his front foot and cleared Sarge's kick, front flipping and somersaulting when he hit the ground on the other side. Sarge spun around, enraged.

He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could speak he heard the creaking of the crates overhead. They began to fall quickly, full of heavy ropes, chains, and sails. Skipper had already pulled his two teammates out of the way of the falling crates and smirked as Sarge looked at him. To Skipper's surprise, however, Sarge managed to roll out of the way of the massive crates, only barely, as they smashed on the ground. A large sized rope flew out of one of the larger crates and whacked him across the face, though, and he fell over, dazed. Thurgo had also managed to get out of the way in time, though he now was stuck under a very heavy coil of rope and net.

"Skipper, catch!" Marlene shouted from the top of the crate she was standing on. Skipper looked up just in time to catch a box cutter that she had tossed his direction. He extended the sharp razor and began freeing Private and Rico.

"Geir!" shouted Sarge, having regained his bearings. The rope had left a trickle of blood running down his beak. "Shoot her!" he pointed to Marlene.

Skipper couldn't see the small rock-hopper as the wall of fallen crates now stood between the two, but he still heard the gunshot when the small penguin pulled the trigger. Thankfully, however, Marlene was able to duck down into a small opening on the crate she was standing on and the shot missed.

Meanwhile, Skipper had freed Rico and Private's flippers and was now working on carefully cutting off the duck tape around their mouths. He cut off Private's first, who quickly spat out a balled up piece of cloth and took in a few gasps of air.

"Thanks, Skippah," said the round penguin, "I thought I was a goner for sure!"

"Save the conversations for later, Private, we're not safe yet." returned Skipper, working on Rico's bound beak. However, the large penguin screamed through his gag and ripped away from Skipper, just in time to block a powerful blow from Sarge directed at Private, who flinched. Rico countered with a powerful kick, knocking sarge back.

"It's over, Fishslader," observed Skipper, "You don't have your henchmen with you and you're outmatched three to one." Sarge scowled. "Now, where are Kowalski and Phil?"

Sarge didn't say anything, and instead walked over to where the crooked dagger was now laying on the ground and picked it up. Oddly enough, he raised it over his head and held it there. Rico had now freed his beak and attempted to move forward, but Skipper held him back, knowing that charging the ex-Sargent would be a foolish idea.

Suddenly, there was a shrill cry from Skipper's right. Sarge grinned evilly and Skipper saw Gier on top of Marlene's crate holding her mouth shut with one flipper, and in the other he had a pocket knife pressed against her windpipe. Marlene was struggling frantically but Gier was surprisingly strong and held her firmly in place.

"Skipper you were always too overconfident. You always think that when you won the battle, you won the war. Now, again, however, I've got you right where I want you." Private moved slightly toward Marlene, his flippers clenched into fists, but Gier tightened his grip on the otter and she screamed loudly through his flipper. Private froze. "If any one of you tries something tricky she dies." instructed Sarge. Skipper clenched his beak shut.

"Now, Skipper... all I have to do is lower my arm here and Gier will slit that silly girl's throat." Sarge was still smiling. Marlene had ceased struggling and was now whimpering quietly. Skipper could tell how scared she was. _Damn!_ Thought skipper, _how could I have let another friend get taken so easily? _

Sarge cleared his throat, "Now tell me the answer to the riddle. Unless perhaps you've forgotten it again?" Skipper looked around. To his fear, there was no way out of this one. If he didn't give Sarge what he wanted now, Marlene was going to die. Skipper looked over to Private, who was holding a flipper to his face, that was still bleeding. Sarge wasn't playing around. Gier's face was as solemn as ever; he showed no appreciation for Marlene's life.

"Skippah, what's the plan?" whispered Private, "He can't be serious about killing Marlene..."

Skipper turned to Private and merely shook his head. He had thought the same thing about Fishslader when they had invaded that small village in Antarctica. He had no problem ordering others to kill innocents. Skipper redirected his attention to the ex-Sargent. He had no choice but to tell the madman.

"The three mirrors." he said, calmly.

"What?" Sarge said, looking slightly surprised.

"There are three, large, rotating mirrors in front of the temple. You need to rotate all of them so they reflect the evening sun onto the door."

"Oh? Is it that easy?" questioned Fishslader.

"Not exactly. The sun doesn't stay up for long and moves fast, so you need three individuals, one controlling each mirror. No one person can move all of them in time."

"'When three become one'..." Sarge pondered, still holding his flipper over his head. Marlene looked relieved that Skipper had told, but Geir still held her tightly.

"You have what you want, now release my friend!" instructed Skipper.

"Well I have to be sure you are not lying to me, Skipper," commented Sarge, "It would be a tragedy to make it all the way to Antarctica only to find that you gave me the wrong instructions."

"I didn't lie to you,"

"Ah, but you have all the reason in the world _to_ lie. There is only one way to make sure a man is telling the truth, Skipper," said Sarge, "and that is to break him."

Suddenly the penguin lowered his arm swiftly, pointing the knife directly at the ground. Gier acknowledged the movement, tightening his grip on the pocket knife and getting ready to slice Marlene open.

"No!" shouted Skipper, and his heart sank knowing there was nothing he could do.

` However, to everyone's surprise, a large net landed on Gier moments before he could carry out his orders and knocked him over, allowing Marlene to stumble away, coughing from the penguin's tight grip.

"Wahoo! I got him!" came a familiar voice from over the other side of the crate. It was Alice!

"Quick, escape plan Alpha-Delta. Move!" shouted Sarge. He quickly made his way over and began freeing the trapped Thurgo, while Gier sliced his way through the net that had landed on top of him and made his way off the crates. The three of them then swiftly made their way to the boat that Private had previously been using as a lookout.

"Boys, stop them!" cried Skipper, not wanting Sarge to get away freely.

They began pursuing the other penguins down the dock, but Gier opened fire with his rifle, and although it was only random blasting, it caused Skipper, Private and Rico to jump behind crates for cover. Gier continued to fire and move backwards until he ran out of ammo in his current magazine, then raced up the gangplank to the ship. When he was on board Sarge knocked the plank into the water and Thurgo freed the heavy ropes that secured it to the dock.

Although Skipper, Rico and Private moved quickly, they were too late. The ship was already too far from the dock to be boarded and there was no way they could climb onto it from the water.

"So long, Skipper," shouted Sarge from the dock of the boat. "And you had better hope for that penguin and monkey's sake that you were telling the truth!" Then, Skipper heard the boats motor start turning and it quickly began moving away from the dock.

Skipper thought for a moment. Sarge's last comment made him think that Kowalski and Phil were trapped on the boat! Not only did Skipper give Sarge the information he needed to continue his plans, but he also was unable to rescue his two friends. It had been the purpose of the whole operation. Skipper had failed.

He was broken from his thoughts, though, by the sounds of two people climbing over the crates. He spun around just in time to see Alice and another, balding man, hoist themselves on top of the crate. In Alice's hand was a large net gun that Skipper recognized from her use of it around the zoo.

"Did those penguins just steal that fishing boat?" pondered the balding man.

"Who cares," returned Alice with a grunt as she stood up on the crate. "those weren't our penguins, and our animals are all right here."

Skipper lowered his brow angrily. "Skipper, c'mon!" Marlene, who had now joined the small group, urged. "There's an opening to the sewers in the water just under the dock." She tugged on his flipper and he obeyed. He signaled Rico to help him lift the heavy Manfredi into the water. Manfredi was large but the two of them were able carry him. Then, when the five of them were in the water, they were able to support him until they were safely in the opening on the sewer tunnel. Just as they made their way inside, Alice and Mr. Green poked their heads over the side of the dock.

* * *

"They got away," Mr. Green said, pulling out one of the small monitors and switching it on, "into the sewers it looks like. Shall we pursue them?"

Alice rubbed the side of her net gun. "Yes, but from a distance." Mr. Green looked confused. "Didn't you see that little one I got with the net right before he was about to slit my otter's throat?"

"Yes, but..."

"Penguins don't do that, Andy, regardless of how much fighting they are capable of. They don't steal fishing boats either. There is something bigger going on here. Something to do with that part robot one and that other one that looks just like my 'leader' guy."

"Don't you think it's over now, though? I mean, those other penguins got away on that stolen boat. Who knows where they are going?"  
"My penguins do."

* * *

**~Author's Note~ **I was on a trip where I had some free time but no internet, so I figured I'd write this chapter. It's been eight months since my last chapter, so I don't expect any of my regulars to be around, but if you enjoyed this chapter and want more, send a review or a message my way. I'll be happy to continue, though I don't expect to release another chapter for a few months.


	29. Commitment

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 29 – Commitment**

* * *

**"Ouch!"**

The specialist's sharp cry of pain echoed around the dreary sewer as Marlene attempted to stem the flow of blood coming from his face.

"Sorry, Private," she offered, using a bit of dirty cloth she had found to wipe the young penguin's wound.

The group had escaped into the mouth of a sewer that opened to the ocean just below the dock. After realizing that Alice and her counter part were not giving chase, they settled down just inside of the opening. It was far enough in so that the smell was prominent, but there was still a nice breeze of cool, fresh air blowing inside. The sun was very low in the western sky now, and the skyline that Marlene could see was already turning dark blue.

She got up from the injured Private and walked over to a broken pipe which, thankfully, was now spurting a very slow stream of clean water. She put the rag into the stream of water and watched it turn from clear to red.

The Asian otter turned her attention to Skipper, who was now standing in the opening of the sewer, flippers crossed, staring at the horizon. His ebony feathers blended into the dimming light, producing an eerie silhouette, as though it was only the shell of the real Skipper.

"You okay, Skipper?" Marlene asked, "You've been standing there for a while now."

Skipper lowered his head ever so slightly, but remained silent.

Marlene redirected her attention to what she was doing. The rag was now clean, and she proceeded to continue cleaning Private's wound. She glanced at Manfredi, who was still unconscious. She had already checked his pulse twice to see if he was still alive. Even though his heart was still beating and his chest slowly rose and fell with his breath, she couldn't help but feel like there was a dead body lying next to her.

She turned her head to look at Rico, who was pacing angrily back and forth. He only stopped every once in a while to punch the air or kick the wall. Marlene could almost feel the anger radiating from him.

"Mmmph," came Private's voice. While looking at Rico, Marlene had accidentally smothered his beak with the rag.

"Sorry again, Private. I'm a little out of it," said Marlene. She handed the smaller penguin the rag and stood up.

"Is'alright," returned the round penguin, "I think we all are." As Private took the rag Marlene noticed his flippers were still trembling.

For the most part, not a word had been said since they got there. Except for the occasional grunt from Rico, yelp of pain from Private, or mysterious groan from down in the sewer, Marlene had only been accompanied by her thoughts. What concerned her about it, though is that Skipper had not said a word since they arrived. Marlene always saw him as an excellent leader, resourceful and intelligent. Now he looked like he was as lost and dazed as everyone else in the room.

Maybe everyone just needs some time to calm down and think things over, she thought.

"Hey Marlene," said Private suddenly, breaking Marlene from her thought, "This may not be the best time, but how did you get all the way to the docks without..." he paused awkwardly, "you know..."

Marlene felt confused for a moment, but then look wide-eyed back at the specialist with surprise. Through what had happened only an hour ago she had completely forgotten about her issue with being outside the zoo walls.

"Well," she began, racking her memories. Everything before the fight on the dock was a bit blurry – she could only think about Gier's knife being pressed against her throat. She looked around for a moment and noticed that Skipper had now turned around, directing his attention towards her.

"I left the zoo a few minutes after you guys did. I started out determined to come find you, or at least get to the docks by the time you did to see if I could help at all. Things went well until I got near the edge of the park, near where the playground is.

"When I got there, I saw the slide. You know, the big, spirally yellow one? For some reason I couldn't resist going over to slide down it. It was so fast and fun, when I got to the bottom, I just had to do it again."

"But Marlene," interrupted Private, "You've got a slide in your habitat already."

"I know, I know," explained the otter, "but this was a different feeling than I ever got from sliding down my slide. I felt so free – just like the last time I was out of the zoo. I must have gone down a dozen times, until this little boy showed up.

"At first he was amazed by me, like it was his first time ever seeing an otter. He laughed, smiled, and said I was cute. I remember smiling back, and then we went down the slide together. We did that a couple of more times, laughing and giggling all the way. Sometimes I went down the slide first, sometimes he went down first. It was so much fun... I never wanted it to end. I felt like it _should never_ end.

"Then, the boy's mom showed up. She yelled for him, told him it was time to leave the park. The boy waved to me, still giggling. I noticed him walking away from the slide... I had to stop him. I ran after him and grabbed his pant leg, stopping him in his tracks. He laughed some more and brushed my paws away, then continued walking towards his mom.

"I remember looking up at the lady, and being overtaken with a growing sense of anger as she looked confused down at me. She whispered something to the little boy, and brushed the dust off his pants. I felt my muscles tense up. The last thing I remember before I blacked out was the lady reaching down and picking up her son. I felt like she had no right to take the boy away from me. The boy was mine, and we were having fun."

Marlene stopped talking for a moment, and silence enveloped the sewer for a while. Rico had stopped his nonsensical pacing and had started listening to her story.

"The next thing I remembered was the boy's face, full of tears. He as yelling at me. He called me evil. He said he hated me. I was heart broken," the otter continued. "Then I noticed his mom. She was now on the ground, clutching her leg. I noticed there was a good area of her pants missing and some blood trickling down her hand. I stepped forward and tried to help, but she screamed. I lifted my paws to try to calm her down, but then I noticed I was holding a piece of fabric from her pants... it was torn to shreds. Not thinking, I ran my tongue over my teeth and tasted blood."

"You attacked a human?" Skipper suddenly interjected, the only thing he had said since they went into hiding. Marlene looked up at him to see his brow arched and his flippers still crossed.

"Yes, but like I said, I don't remember doing it. After that I some men began running after me, so I took off into the only place I knew I could be safe: down here in the sewer. It took me a little while to collect myself, but I'm glad I made it to the docks when I did."

"That's for sure!" offered Private, thankfully. Marlene opened her mouth to say something more, but Skipper spoke first.

"You never should have left the zoo." he said, simply, and turned back around.

Marlene couldn't help but feel anger at the statement. "Wait, what? Why?" she asked, confused.

"You can't handle being out here, Marlene," the leader penguin continued, "Not only did you let the humans see you; you actively _attacked_ one of them. You've compromised my whole mission."

"Do you even know what you're saying?" Marlene argued, "If I _hadn't_ have shown up at the docks, Private could be _dead_ right now!"

Marlene heard Private whimper. Skipper stayed quiet for a moment, still looking out to the horizon. "You could be too," he said after a while.

Marlene was taken aback by the statement. She rubbed her throat where she had felt the cold kiss of Gier's knife against her windpipe. If Alice hadn't had have come around at that exact moment...

"I knew I was risking my life by coming," Marlene explained. "I know I don't have any combat training and I'm not that strong. I have my brains though," she pointed to her head, "and they came in handy, didn't they?"

"You wanted to help us?" said Skipper, still not turning back around.

"Well... yes." said Marlene. She didn't want to tell him the real reason she had ran out of the zoo the night the penguins left. She knew she had done so out of her own selfish want for adventure and excitement. She couldn't bear the idea of sitting in her exhibit while her friends were off battling some major threat. She knew they might need her help, and of course she was worried for their safety. She also knew, however, that her coming along could adversely affect their goal: she even knew it was possible that her being around could possibly even have resulted in utter failure. She knew she would make an easy target for Sarge to manipulate Skipper...

"Then help us by going back to the zoo. Right now." Skipper said, dryly. A chill ran up Marlene's spine. However, she found her voice and managed to respond.

"There's no way I can go back to the zoo now," she explained. "One of the people who saw me attack that lady probably recognized me from the zoo brochures or something. They'd probably make Alice... get rid of me."

Suddenly, Skipper spun around quickly and marched right up into Marlene's face. Though he said no words, his face was twisted in anger and his eyes met Marlene's. She felt his icy stare burn deep into into her skull. She wanted to look away, almost as if she was ashamed.

"No excuses, Marlene," Skipper began, "If you hadn't have showed up, that rock-hopper would never have gotten his hands on you. I never would have had to give Fishslader what he wanted. I would have gotten Kowalski back."

Marlene noticed something new in Skipper's eyes as he said Kowalski's name; something unique. It made him look tired, almost as if he was an old penguin. It faded as soon as it had appeared though, and Marlene was once again intimidated by the penguin's glare.

"But... but Private was..." Marlene tried to argue, but she lost her voice again and Skipper interrupted her.

"If you would have just stayed in the zoo like you were supposed to, I wouldn't have failed."

Marlene felt guilty. Skipper's words stung her, and she felt her eyes begin to water up.

"Is that all this was, Skippah?" Private piped up. He had tears streaming down his face, mixing with the blood coming out of the gash across his cheek. "Was this all just _your_ mission? Did _you_ fail? Did you forget what we even came out here to do? I remember you said to us that we were 'going to get our boys back.' Do you remember that?"

Skipper still locked his gaze with Marlene, but the otter could see that he no longer radiated the anger than he was moments before. Private continued speaking.

"If Marlene made _you_ fail _your_ mission, maybe I shouldn't have come either. Then I wouldn't have been captured. Maybe Rico shouldn't have come either. Then you and Manfredi would have had to deal with it all by yourself, but _we_ wouldn't have been in your way!."

Skipper averted his eyes from Marlene, but did not look towards Private. "You're right, Private," he said. "I'm sorry, Marlene." The otter didn't respond. Looking tired, and now a bit sad, the flat-headed penguin proceeded back to his perch by the entrance of the sewers. "We didn't save Kowalski."

"_K'waski!_" blurted Rico.

"We tried our best, Skippah," offered Private, who was now rubbing the tears out of his eyes with the dirty cloth, "Now all we an try to do is go find Kowalski."

Marlene noted how Sarge had yelled to them that Kowalski and Phil were still on the boat, but they were still not sure if it was the truth or not. She knew, however, that there was little chance that Sarge was actually lying about it.

"Our best wasn't good enough," returned Skipper. _What a downer_, thought Marlene.

The entire sewer filled with silence once more. Marlene walked over to the side of the entrance and sat, pulling her knees up into her chest. She glanced around her; Rico had stopped his pacing and Private had tossed the rag away from himself, even though his wound was still trickling blood. Her eyes came to rest on Manfredi – who somehow was still out cold. Marlene momentarily thought about what had happened to him during the fight before she got there. Her eyes came to rest on his chest. She watched it rise and fall with his breath. Rise; fall.

A few awkward minutes that seemed like hours passed before Marlene's keen sense of hearing picked up on something new. It sounded like footsteps, but from where she couldn't tell. They were echoing all around her. She briefly thought she was going crazy, but upon seeing Private and Rico's interest in the noise as well, she knew it really existed. She saw Rico ball his flippers into fists, tense at the unknown noise.

The footsteps were closer now – Marlene could tell there were two pairs of feet. Whoever it was, they were running fast. She felt the fur on the back of her neck stand up and her heart rate accelerated. She could hear panting now. It almost sounded familiar...

Suddenly, a monochrome lemur rounded a corner a little way down the sewer.

"Julien!" Marlene cried out. What was he doing here?

"Phil, de king has found de penguins!" the self-proclaimed king declared loudly down the entrance he had emerged from. A few seconds later, a chimpanzee rounded the corner as well. The pair began approaching Marlene.

"Julien, you found Phil!" the otter said, excitedly. She didn't think she had been as happy to see Julien in her entire life.

As Julien approached Marlene noted that he looked rough. His fur was matted and untidy. He looked soaking wet. There were clumps of what Marlene hoped was just mud in his fur as well. Phil looked equally as dirty.

"What happened, Julien?" asked Private, "What happened? How did you find us?"

The lemur king leaned over, panting for breath. He took a moment to compose himself before finally explaining.

"De king... I went... de boat..." it was like Julien wanted to say everything he had to say all at one time.

"Ringtail, spit it out!" commanded Skipper, who had left his post at the entrance to the sewer once again.

"De king followed Marlene out of the zoo when she left," the tall lemur pointed to Marlene, "to... uh... see what she was doing. After she got to the ship place thingy, I saw you fishy penguins fighting with de evil penguins."

Julien stood up proud before continuing, "Using my kingly smarts, I snuck onto der ship," he made a motion of sneaking around, "and found funky monkey and de kidnapped penguin tied up below de deck. Den, just as de ship started moving, I jumped into de water with the funky monkey and saw de fishy penguins go into de sewer."

"Why didn't you come find us sooner, if you saw where we went?" Skipper asked. Marlene noticed he now looked surprised, and even a little bit excited.

"Uh," Julien answered, "You see, de king has only a few skills left he needs to master. Swimming is one of dose skills." Phil made a motion of drowning in the ocean. "We got swept away by a current, and ended up a long ways down de shore."

"It's great you found us," Private said, a visible smile now on his face, "but where is Kowalski?" He leaned over and peered down the entrance that Julien and Phil had emerged from.

"Oh, dat tall fishy-penguin," Julien explained. "He said he didn't want to come with."

Suddenly, Skipper ran up and grabbed Julien's shoulders. Julien was surprised by this and attempted to pull away, but Skipper held his arms tight.

"What do you mean he didn't want to come with?" Skipper said. Marlene noted how he looked almost as angry as he did when he had yelled at her only a few minutes ago. She concluded that Skipper really felt like he had failed his friend – and had attempted to blame it on her. She knew if Julien didn't come up with a satisfactory answer, he would do the same with him. It was as if Skipper never thought a failure was his own fault.

"De king is telling the truth!" answered Julien. Phil grabbed Skipper's flipper and nodded vigorously, trying to calm the penguin down. Skipper let the self-proclaimed king go and Marlen acknowledged that he was telling the truth.

Julien brushed his shoulders off, scoffing as if Skipper had done him some great offense. "As de king was saying," he began, "de smart penguin said he was to be staying on de boat so dat you can track de evil penguins."

Skipper visibly slapped his forehead, as Marlene suddenly realized Kowalski's plan.

"He must have realized what those penguins are up to," she offered, "and when Julien went to save them, he offered to stay behind. Skipper, he wants us to track those penguins!"

"Kowalski, you son of a gun..." mumbled Skipper, walking over to the backpack that was laying near the unconscious Manfredi. He opened up the a watertight compartment on its side and pulled out the GPS tracking device. _Why hadn't we thought of sooner?_ thought Marlene.

She walked over to where the leader penguin was looking at the device and looked at it herself. On its screen, he had zoomed the map out to the furthest possible distance it could go. Sure enough, there was one, blinking, green blip floating in the water just off the coast of long island.

"We've got to go after him, Skippah!" urged Private, his flippers balled into fists.

"_Go! Go!_" urged Rico, jumping up and down.

Skipper looked up from the device. "Looks like we're going to need a boat," he returned, simply.

* * *

**~Author's** **Note~ **I have to say, I have been thinking about this story non-stop for the last few weeks. I'm hoping to write at least two more chapters before the new year, so keep an eye out for them. Also, as an odd note - After re-reading several segments of the story, I have realized that I originally mentioned the CIES tracking chips to only have a range of 50 miles and a battery life of 1 month. That's changed, in case you were wondering.


	30. Transportation

**The Speed of Darkness**

**Chapter 30 – Transportation**

**"_GO, GO, GO!_"**

Skipper watched Rico hop around crazily, almost maniacally, after he had mentioned the boat.

"Are there any boats nearby we could take, Skippah?" asked Private.

"No clue, soldier," responded the leader, "but chances are pretty high, considering this is a shipyard."

"Do you guys even know how to drive a boat?" asked Marlene.

Skipper recalled the time that he and his team had hijacked an entire shipping barge. The ship had been on a straight shot from New York to Africa, but the penguins managed to overpower the dozens of sailors on board and sent them off in rubber, inflatable rafts. Of course, they had left a radio and tracking beacon with the sailors so they could be rescued. Later, they redirected the ship to go directly south. That had been a triumphant day.

"Of course," the square-chested penguin responded, smirking slightly. He didn't realize it, but it was the first time he had smiled all day.

"Skippah," spoke Private, "what are we going to do about Manfredi?" The specialist was pointing to the robot-penguin, still unconscious, laying up against the wall of the sewer.

Skipper rubbed his beak thoughtfully. There was no way they'd be able to carry him all the way to the boat, and in his current state, he would be a huge hindrance if they had to attempt to be stealthy or take out a few humans. Though, there was no telling how long it would be until he woke up.

"I'll see if I can get him to wake up," Private offered after nobody responded, grabbing the rag from where he had tossed it earlier. He proceeded to dampen it in the clean stream from the broken pipe.

"In the meantime," Skipper said, turning to Julien, "You need to get yourself and Phil back to the zoo ASAP. Alice already knows about us leaving, and most likely about Marlene. Some bad stuff could go down if she knew even more animals were missing."

"Pfft," scoffed Julien. "Dat is the only thanks I get for my heroic deeds?"

The lanky lemur was standing tall, his arms crossed. Skipper again noticed just how matted his fur was, and how droplets of water were still dripping off it. The leader knew from experience that Julien was not one to show signs of selflessness. He might even go so far as to say the lemur king valued his own fur more than the lives of his friends. However – this was a different side of the lemur that Skipper had not seen before. The king had obviously not cared very much about staying clean and dry to have sneaked onto the ship to rescue Phil. Skipper briefly wondered if there was some, more pronounced reasoning behind the lemur's actions. He thought back to the night that the two of them had spoken on top of the penguin headquarters, as Skipper had tried to leave the zoo.

"Thanks, ringtail." Skipper returned.

"It is not being a problem," smiled the lemur. He spun around and began walking out of the sewer. "Phil, Marlene, please be following de king back to de zoo."

"Wait, what?" said Marlene, confused. "I can't go back to the zoo."

Skipper saw a sudden look of fear in Marlene's eyes as she looked at him. He could tell she was worried that something bad might happen if she went back to the zoo right now. After all, she had outright attacked a human, and not with the stealth that the penguins use. Skipper remembered hearing about dogs that were put down because they had attacked their owners...

"She's right, Julien," confirmed Skipper. Marlene looked relieved. "Marlene's coming with us."

Julien stopped in his tracks, but didn't say anything. He looked back over his shoulder at the leader penguin, and opened his mouth to say something, but closed it again. Skipper saw his eyes dance between himself and Marlene. Julien, not arguing? _Something must have happened that seriously changed that lemur_, thought Skipper. Julien looked back towards the exit of the sewer after a moment.

"Let us be going, Phil," said Julien, almost shakily. Phil walked over to Skipper and raised his hand. Skipper shook it, and the chimpanzee nodded, as if he was wishing Skipper good luck. The two of them rounded the same corner they had emerged from, and after a little while, their footsteps could no longer be heard.

"Guys, I think he's coming to!" said Private from across the sewer shortly after Julien had left.

"Johnson? Johnson!" came Manfredi's voice suddenly. He sounded groggy, like he was still half asleep. "Johnson, you are alive!" Private gasped as Manfredi reached up and pulled him down into a tight bear hug.

"I can't believe it, you survived!" the mechanical bird's voice sounded shaky suddenly, as though he was about to begin crying. Manfredi pulled himself and a terrified looking Private up off the ground, though not releasing the specialist. Skipper waddled over and attempted to pry the two apart, but Manfredi was not budging.

"Manfredi!" urged Skipper, "Manfredi, that's not Johnson! Snap out of it, man!"

Manfredi looked down at Private, who whimpered. Skipper couldn't tell if the droplets running down the robotic penguin's feathers were from Private splashing water on him, or if they were tears. The large bird released Private at that point, who quickly backed up, still looking as though he had just seen a ghost.

"I... I am sorry..." Manfredi said, rubbing his eyes. Skipper placed a flipper on the penguin's shoulder.

"Are you alright?" he asked his ex-teammate. Manfredi looked tired. Not physically tired, either – he still stood up straight and towered over Skipper. It was as if it was on a mental level. It was like his eyes were tired of seeing false images; mirages.

Manfredi nodded slowly.

"How about you, Private?" The specialist also only nodded, his eyes locked on the robot-penguin. Skipper didn't know why Private seemed so traumatized by the event. Marlene walked up and wrapped him in a hug.

"How did we arrive here? What happened? Where is my target?" Manfredi began, now a little more composed.

Skipper bought him up to speed. "So now we need to locate and commandeer a vessel to get us to Kowalski," he concluded after the short briefing, "and we need to do it fast. This CIES GPS only has a fifty mile range on it. If we don't leave soon, we'll loose track of our boy."

Manfredi nodded understandingly, and the group moved out.

* * *

The dock was abandoned. Skipper thought for sure there would be people here, even at this late hour. He even had fears that there would be some people here overnight, like security guards. His hopes were raised a little knowing they would not have to worry about being stealthy or having to take out a few humans to get a boat.

However, it was as if there was a lack of boats as well. Skipper hadn't noticed it when they had first arrived at the docks, but the they were almost fully abandoned. It was like a ghost town on the edge of the Atlantic ocean. The narrow wooden walkways were lined with ropes that weren't tied to any boats, yachts or trawlers. Life vest racks were left empty. A spider slowly spun her web underneath a bench.

It was dark now, as well. The sun had fully set. There was a slight glow from the city; just enough to illuminate the animal's way so they didn't fall in the water. However, the floodlights that would normally illuminate the entire area remained unlit.

"Skipper, look," said Marlene, suddenly. She was gesturing to a small, rusty looking boat tied to the very end of one of the docks. As far as Skipper could see, it was the only boat still there.

Skipper nodded to the Asian otter, and the group proceeded to the boat. Skipper noticed the name of vessel as the climbed aboard, painted on the side in peeling paint. It was the _S.S._ something, but he was unsure how to read the rest.

After the entire group boarded the boat, Skipper made his way to the control room. He recognized it immediately from his past experience on the giant fishing barge. It was considerably smaller than that one and much less high-tech. The seat was torn and smelled like rotten fish. Many of the dials were broken. The compass was smashed. The glass in front of him was dirty and cracked. It didn't seem like any of the humans had driven this boat in a long time. Skipper hoped that it still worked.

Getting the boat to work was going to be an issue. The shipping barge the penguins had hijacked last time had already been running when they took control of it. This boat was inactive, and Skipper had no clue how to start it. A little inspection shed light on it though. There was a keyhole – not much unlike the one that Skipper had seen in the golf cart back in the zoo.

"What's the matter, Skippah?" asked Private as Skipper touched the keyhole thoughtfully.

"This boat needs a key before it will run," the flat-headed penguin answered, tapping the dashboard of the boat.

"Well darn," said Marlene, "There aren't even any people around here that might have a key on them."

Skipper closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. There must be another way to start the boat's engine. Someway to bypass the mechanical lock on the ignition. Kowalski would know how to start the boat. If only he were here...

Suddenly, Rico began blabbering from underneath the cabin's seat. Skipper went to see what he had found. There was a metal fuse box he had opened, revealing a lot of cobwebs and several decaying wires, giving light onto just how old this boat really was.

"Skippah, I remember Kowalski messing around with wires like those once. That time that we lost the key for the zoo golf cart. He was able to start it by rearranging the wires." said Private.

Skipper nodded, "That's right, Private, but I haven't the slightest what he did."

Manfredi came and looked into the fuse box as well, causing Private to take a step back. Skipper didn't look directly at him, though he could tell the specialist was thoroughly scared by his ex-teammate.

"This red wire is the voltage source from the battery," he explained without prompt, gently touching a thick, crimson wire. "The black wire is what comes out of the electronics of this boat; it is called the 'ground.' The gray, orange, and purple wires are probably associated with some sort of navigational or sensor equipment that we should not need to alter.

"However, from my experience, this pink wire should be the feed to the ignition. See how the red wire runs up in the direction of the dashboard, and then the black wire returns to feed into the pink wire? Somewhere on that line is the switch, controlled by the turn of the key, that will complete this circuit and allow current to travel to the ignition of the engine."

"So you're saying we need to cut the wire short, and bypass that switch?" said Skipper, understandingly. Manfredi nodded. He then waddled over to the bag and took out the crooked knife.

"Unfortunately, live electricity is a real threat to me, as you saw from our confrontation on the dock. So, though I can guide you, I cannot risk receiving another shock."

Skipper nodded, then took the dagger from Manfredi. Carefully, he cut the red wire right before it disappeared underneath the floorboards of the cabin. Then, following Manfredi's instructions, stripped the end of the wire so the copper metal was exposed. He did the same with the pink wire.

"So, all I should need to do now is connect these two wires?" Skipper asked.

"Yes, but not directly," answered the robot-penguin. Skipper looked at him, arching a brow.

"What do you mean?"

"The key switch is not a direct contact. It does not allow full, unaltered current to flow from the battery into the ignition. That would burn it out. However, there is some sort of resistor, very strong in nature, attached to the key switch. It limits the amount of current."

"So we need to access that resistor," concluded Skipper.

"If we could do that, things would be easy," answered Manfredi. It is locked deep in the dashboard. If we could get to it, we could override the key switch in the first place." he gestured up towards all of the dials. "We could also attempt to replace it, though we have no idea how powerful the resistor is. If we use one too weak, it will burn the motor out and ruin our chances."

"So lets just use one that's very powerful." offered Marlene.

"That would work," Manfredi nodded.

"But where are we going to find a resistor? We don't have time to run around New York right now." said Skipper, getting a little frustrated at how complicated this was.

Suddenly, Manfredi grabbed both ends of the wire from Skipper, being careful not to touch the wire ends together or to himself.

"Manfredi, what are you do..." began Skipper.

"The electronics intertwined with my being should provide the proper resistance." he said, calmly.

Marlene looked wide-eyed and confused at the robot-penguin. "I thought you said you couldn't take a shock like that." she said.

"I did. There is a risk that I will die."

Skipper felt a sudden wave of fear roll over him. He suddenly found it hard to breath for some reason. "You can't risk your life for this boat. We can find another that we can get off the ground more easily."  
"You saw there were no other boats on this dock, Skipper. In addition, we do not have time to argue. My target is gaining ground on us quickly."

Skipper didn't respond, unsure of what else to say. He had to agree, but he still couldn't let his ex-teammate risk his life for a boat that might not even start. He knew Kowalski's life hung in the balance. He also knew that the more minutes they wasted, the closer Sarge was getting to the sun. Either or, Skipper wasn't going to let Manfredi risk his life for the boat. They'd have to find a resistor somewhere else.

Before he could open his mouth however, Manfredi gripped the pink wire tightly, and then touched the red wire to his forehead.

"No!" cried Skipper as he saw a flash, heard a spark, and then watched as Manfredi went into a seizure. It was not unlike when he had been electrocuted on the dock. Moments later, he stopped and collapsed, dropping both ends of the wire. Skipper's heart missed a beat, and he didn't notice the sound of the engine roaring to life.

"Oh my," came Marlene's voice, and she stumbled over to the collapsed metal-bird hybrid. She pressed her ear to his chest.

Skipper looked away from his friend momentarily and saw the wires hanging loose. _You need to reconnect the the power source to the normal electronics equipment in order to get full functionality_. He suddenly recalled Kowalski saying to him once.

Skipper grabbed the knife and cut through the gray wire, stripping both ends like he had done with the previous wires. Following the direction of the wires, he connected the red wire where he figured the source fed into, and the black wire where he figured it came out of. He twisted the wires tight, and as he made the final connection, the light overhead in the cabin buzzed to life. Shortly there after, many of the dials on the dashboard flickered and turned on as well. Finally, some soft of strange, green touch screen turned on near the captain's wheel, showing a standard radar.

Skipper's eyes drifted back to Marlene after he had finished wiring the panel. His heart sank when he saw her eyes full of fear and disbelief.

* * *

**~Author's Note** Merry Christmas everyone! I was hoping to get this chapter out yesterday, but I failed to finish it in time. Here you go, though!

I got a collection of Penguins of Madagasgar DVD's for Christmas. I'm going to spend some time studing them and work on improving dialog and character for all of the main characters. I hope you can see some improvement in the next few chapters.

Another note about the CIES: I'm reenforcing it's 50 mile range limit as a plot device. UMAD?. (battery still lasts forever, though).

Finally, I should have the next chapter out before the new year. It's a good one.


	31. Explanation

Skipper's Log. 20:00 Hours on August the twenty seventh.

_"We failed._

_ "Everything had started off according to plan. We infiltrated the base on schedule this morning at oh-four-hundred. Our plan was simple: to get to the communications room. We wanted to send a broadcast to all of the troops. We wanted to let them know about their corrupt leader and how he was just planning on using them to bring the world to its knees. About how they would be used to commit murder in only a few weeks._

_ "Getting into the base was far easier than we had anticipated. We had thought it would be a slow process – rounding corners carefully, avoiding cameras, taking out guards one by one. That was at least what I was imagining this sort of thing to be like. I was surprised when we managed to basically walk in through the front door. _

_ "We accessed the main entrance through the ventilation shafts, like we had planned. There were only two penguins guarding the main gate, though. Little did we know that it wasn't even locked. It made me suspicious for a while; like Sarge knew we might return, and was welcoming us with open arms. Now I wish I had acted on that suspicion earlier._

_ "One of the penguins had been sleeping, and Manfredi quickly knocked the other clean out. We didn't want to resort to using our weapons at all, if possible. We were limited on ammo and time, and needed to remain quiet. Besides – I don't think any of us wanted to open fire on the other penguins anyway. They were our squad mates only a day ago. Besides, I don't know if I'd even be able to handle gunning down another man._

_ "We moved quickly through the infrastructure. There didn't seem to be a soul around. We tried our best to avoid the cameras, disabling them where necessary. I had the strangest feeling that nobody was even on the other end of the feed, though, watching our every move. I had thought that after only a few cameras were disabled, some alarm would have been triggered. _

_ "We got to the communications hub far before we would have expected. Johnson and I watched the door while Manfredi used the console to send his message out. After activating the morning bell to wake the troops up, he used the equipment to broadcast about Fishslader. It was a heartfelt message, and I almost thought I saw him wipe a tear out of his eye. He first explained the situation: about the plan for the upcoming battle, who they'd actually be fighting, what the ultimate goal was. Then he gave a personal note: he spoke about his loved ones who lived in the town they'd be attacking. _

_ "That was a huge mistake. I had asked him not to give that kind of information. Caspian Fishslader had no idea that Manfredi had family in Antarctica. Now he did, and I have a bad feeling that he will be using that against us now that we failed to convince the troops to rebel. _

_ "It wasn't long into Manfredi's speech that someone began coming down the hallway towards our position. They meant business; armed to the teeth with grenades at the ready. We were cornered in the room, and barely made it out through a ventilation shaft as the flash bangs went off behind us._

_ "We thought we were home free until we found our way back out the same shaft we had come in from. Fishslader and around one hundred troops were waiting for us on the other end of the ventilation tunnel. Their guns were at the ready. _

_ "Manfredi's attempt at converting the troops, or at least a few of the troops, to our cause had been completely void. The penguins had been kept in the dark for so long that they had not believed what Manfredi said. The ones that saw a sliver of truth in it were too afraid to attempt to join us. Some of the penguins had been brainwashed into believing we were the enemy. Sarge had been running the entire operation exactly as he had planned. He played the entire Penguin Army for fools, but nobody but us saw what the truth was. He had won the psychological war._

_ "Manfredi had pointed his rifle directly at Sarge when we exited the shaft. He was breathing heavily; his entire body was shaking. He couldn't bring himself to pull the trigger, though. 'I can't do it Skipper,' he said to me, 'I can't take his life.' Despite the pleas of Johnson, he threw his rifle to the __ground after that, and gave himself up. Johnson and I had no choice but to follow in his footsteps after that point._

_ "They took us to a holding area after that point. Kept us locked up so they would have enough time to organize and perform a proper execution. Fortunately for us, however, Manfredi had just been in that cell, and he still remembered how to pick the lock. The guard who was watching over us was young. I almost would say he was younger than Johnson. He hardly knew how to defend himself; but we still had to deal with him before he activated the alarm._

_ "We managed to find three new rifles. And by some miracle, my tape recorder. We didn't find Johnson's journal, though. He was heartbroken – he had recorded his entire life into it. I had to hold him back from charging headfirst back into that hell for it. Manfredi managed to calm him down. He was the one who had already lost all of his pictures, his memoirs, his items with sentimental value. According to him, Sarge had burned them right in front of his eyes._

_ "It seems like now we are where we are were exactly twenty four hours ago. Camped out in the woods, the penguin fortress just visible in the distance. This time, however, we don't know where to go. There is no way we are going to take on Fishslader now. No way that we can stop his army. No way that we can save Manfredi's family._

_ "No way that we can save the world..."_

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 31 – Explanation**

**"HE'S NOT BREATHING!"**

Marlene looked worried. She was shaking slightly, and her face was drained. She had her ear pressed to the robot-penguin's chest, and held his flipper in her paw. It was like she was trying any possible way to receive some sort of feedback that the mechanical penguin was still alive.

Skipper, too, was worried. He didn't quite understand the feeling when his gut tightened into a knot. Up until only a few weeks ago, he had thought Manfredi had been dead. Skipper had already mourned for his fallen teammate. He didn't think he would be able to mourn again. Did Manfredi just sacrifice himself for a boat?

"Marlene, is he... dead?" came Private's squeak. He was backed all the way up against the wall of the cabin, like the sight of the possibly dead body in front of him repulsed him. Skipper wondered briefly if Manfredi terrified his specialist more in death than in life.

The flat-headed penguin redirected his attention toward the penguin laying on the cold metal floor not far from him. He looked limp, but his organic eye was still open. The red, mechanical eye on the other side still emitted some sort of low light. It seemed to be flashing a deep, dark red. Was that the large penguin's death call? Was the light attempting to signal some outside force to take Manfredi away? Skipper shook his head as Marlene spoke.

"I-I think so," she said shakily, looking at Private. "I can feel his heartbeat, but he's not breathing. He probably doesn't have long left." She still looked shaky, but she seemed to be handling the situation far better than Private. She looked at the short penguin still sitting near the electronics panel. "What should we do, Skipper?"

Skipper sighed, "We'll finish what Manfredi was attempting to do for the past two years."

He hopped up onto the driver's seat of the boat and hit a few switches. He was not entirely sure what most of them did, but he did recognize the one that raised the anchor. He had seen a similar switch on the large shipping barge they had stolen all that time ago. After he heard the satisfying clank that showed the anchor was safely stowed on board, he knocked the boat into full reverse. They pulled away from the dock. It was only a few minutes before Skipper spun the boat around, allowing them to go full speed in the right direction. The leader-penguin glanced behind him and saw the coastline of New York become fainter and fainter, being shrouded in a fog that began rolling over the ocean. It was the last they'd see of New York for a long time.

"What's that, Skipper?" he heard Marlene say. He hadn't realized the other animals had crowded around the base of the seat, looking up at him. "There's something much bigger going on here than just rescuing Kowalski, isn't there? It involves this 'Sun', doesn't it?"

Skipper only sighed again. He knew it was time to spill the beans. Private, Rico, and Marlene were trapped on a boat with him, going to rescue Kowalski and confront Sarge. Marlene may have brought herself into it by leaving the zoo, but Private and Rico hadn't asked for any of this. They hadn't asked for their friend and teammate Kowalski to be penguin-napped. Even though, they stuck with him. They fought with him on the dock. The least he could do was tell them what they were fighting and why.

"You're right Marlene," Skipper began. "Rescuing Kowalski is a big part of this whole operation, but there much more to it."

Skipper turned the boat so it faced directly southeast. When they got far enough from the coast, he would point it directly south. He continued, figuring it would be best to start from the beginning.

"You probably remember me talking about Manfredi and Johnson. Remember how I said they went on all those dangerous missions? Fought off countless enemies? Wound up digging their own graves with teaspoons?

"Those things didn't actually happen. There is no denying that Manfredi and Johnson were heroes, though." Skipper glanced at the dead Manfredi, laying not far from him. He shivered. "I was their teammate about three years back. We were Beta Squad, one of the most highly trained and respected teams in the Penguin Army. Our battalion was made up of around one hundred penguins, while the others had many more. All in all, the Penguin Army was a able fighting force of around three thousand bodies.

"One day, Manfredi got promoted to Corporal. Sarge did the ceremony. With his new officer position, Manfredi got into the intelligence of the actual army itself. It wasn't long until he found out what the Penguin Army had actually been founded to do.

"We were destined to attack a small settlement of Antarctic penguins not far from the south pole itself. There wasn't much reason behind the madness – this settlement wasn't going to be able to fight back. It was going to be a massacre, and Manfredi wanted to stop it.

"As soon as he tried suggesting alternate plans of attack, or to not engage with the civilians, he was put on the execution line. He narrowly escaped, and Johnson and I fled the Penguin Army with him. We tried to stop Sarge from invading Antarctica in any way we could, but we failed. Sarge's plans came through."

Skipper looked thoughtfully out of the stained window of the boat. There wasn't much to see now. It was pitch black, and the fog had fully rolled in, blocking out the moon and all of the stars.

"Where does the Sun come in, and why is it so important?" asked Private, enveloped by the story. Rico wheezed, also eager to know.

"That was Sarge's goal from day one. It was his intention far before he had formed the Penguin Army. On top of that, the army had not been formed for getting the Sun in the first place. Sarge knew he could do that alone if he wanted to. The army had been formed for defending the Sun after he already got it."

"What does the Sun do?" asked Marlene.

"The Sun is some sort of ancient artifact. I don't know exactly what it is capable of, but its got some serious energy behind it. From what the locals in Antarctica said, it is Earth's life energy itself."

Skipper heard Private gasp.

"It's kept in this large temple-like structure that extends deep into the ground. It's somewhere at the very bottom. It is held in this crazy machine... almost like it is plugged right into the Earth's core. When Sarge removed it the first time, it was like the entire world started to fall apart. Right away, this massive earthquake shook Antarctica. We all thought that it was going to be the end, like the Sun was never supposed to be removed in the first place.

"It stopped after a little while though. However, even weirder things happened in the coming days after the Sun was removed. It took a few days for us to realize it, but it was as if the Earth had stopped rotating entirely. The sun, the one in the sky, seemed to have frozen in place. On our way away from Antarctica, it was hard to notice, but it never became night. We were on the boat for several weeks, and the Sun was always in the sky. Even when we made it all the way back to the penguin base, the Sun still remained high in the sky.

"And it was hot. It was like being trapped in the desert, except we were far from it. The Sun had only been removed for a couple of weeks, but it was like the side of the earth facing the Sun was becoming scorched. I can only assume the other side of the earth was beginning to freeze.

"Of course, when Sarge got his prize he headed straight back to Denmark, his army, and his fortress. I can only assume he didn't realize what was happening to the earth. When he got there, he used the Sun to power his base's defense matrix. I don't know where he got his hands on the technology to harness that kind of power, but he had it."

"Was that all Sarge wanted?" asked Marlene, "To power his base?"

"It was part of it. That's where the Penguin Army comes in. The reason he had been training us Penguins to form an army was to defend it. He knew that when the humans found out about the sun and what he was doing with it, whether by their own accord or when he told them, they would come knocking.

"He wanted them to come. He wanted to wage war on the humans. That had been his goal from the start."

"But Skippah," came Private's squeak, "Why does Sarge hate the people so much?"

"Your guess is as good as mine, Private. Whatever the reason, though, he had this planned out. By operating in the secrecy of the wilderness in northern Denmark, he was able to set his base of operations and form his army without interference from the people while he was still weak. Had the humans discovered him before he got his hands on the sun, he probably would have been stopped way before Manfredi, Johnson, or I even got dragged into that whole mess.

"His plan was a good one, too. It wasn't something he was making up on the fly. He chose a specific day and time to make the planet stop rotating. It left the sun in the ideal position for Denmark and a very thin few miles around it. Because it was fall and the days were becoming shorter around there, the sun was locked in a permanent sunset. It kept Sarge's fortress and a little surrounding area a comfortable temperature, while the rest of the world either froze or burned."

"You got the Sun back, didn't you, Skippah?" asked Private.

"Yes. Not without Manfredi and Johnson's help, though. We managed to get to the core of the penguin base, and I ripped the Sun out of there as fast as I could. After I removed it it caused some sort of catastrophic meltdown. We raced to get out of there in time. Johnson got caught up somehow on the way out, though. He ran back in for some reason, but to this day I still don't know why. Manfredi followed after him, trying to rescue him.

"The last time I saw Manfredi until he attacked me at the zoo, he was racing back after Johnson. The entrance to the base collapsed after he turned around, and that was the last I saw of him. Judging by the explosion that followed after the collapse, I was sure that they were both dead. I guess Manfredi made it out, somehow."

Private seemed to shake his head in disbelief. Rico scratched his head in confusion. Marlene, who still hadn't let go of Manfredi's flipper, looked up at him wide-eyed. Private spoke first.

"Why didn't you tell this to us a long time ago?"

Skipper sighed, looking away. "It's my past, Private. It was never any of your worries. Now, I've dragged all of you into this."

A moment of silence enveloped the group. The only sound that could be heard was the cold nighttime wind whistling over a crack in the window. Skipper briefly wondered what would have happened if he had never left the zoo; never got tangled back up in this mess. Maybe he would have been able to confront Sarge with Kowalski, Private, and Rico like he should have. Maybe Kowalski never would have gotten penguin-napped. Maybe they never would have had to hot-wire this damn boat...

"_K'waski!_" came Rico's hoarse voice. He now looked determined, rather than confused.

"Rico's right," affirmed Private. "When that bloody crook stole Kowalski, he made it personal."

"And if rescuing him means confronting this greater evil," continued Marlene, "then we're with you Skipper."

Skipper looked down at the other animals in the cabin. Marlene had her arms crossed, looking confident. Rico was smiling widely, his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth. Private had his flippers balled into fists, his face screwed up into an angry frown. The cut across his face gave him an intimidating look that Skipper had never seen out of the younger penguin before. It reminded him of Johnson.

Skipper wanted to thank them for coming along. He knew that he wouldn't be able to take down Sarge again without them, especially with Manfredi possibly being out of the running. He knew that his teammates hadn't even said a word against going to the docks. They knew it was probably a trap. Skipper had warned them. They didn't turn back, though. Even though Marlene had not been invited originally, she too had been invaluable to the operation so far.

All Skipper could think to do was nod. "You three should go get some rest," he offered, "I'll drive this raft for the night."

"Aye-aye Skipper," said Private, yawning.

"What should we do about Manfredi?" asked Marlene, pointing to the near-death penguin laying on the floor of the captains cabin.

"He's not going anywhere, and I'm not declaring him dead until he has absolutely no pulse."

"You seem confident that he might survive that shock," returned the otter.

"He's escaped death once already. I have a feeling he's not going to let death win today, either."

* * *

**~Author's Note~** So there you have it. This is the third chapter I promised, though it is a few days late. I hope you enjoy it anyway. I probably won't have much time to write for the next few months because of school, but we'll see. Thanks for sticking with this story and reading up until this point, though, even though I'm a slow writer.


	32. Stowaway

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 32 – Stowaway**

**THE OTTER YAWNED.**

She hadn't realized just how tired she was up until she had snuggled up in the hammock that was hung in the captain's quarters. Its cloth was torn and old, and the pillow she rested her head on smelled like mildew. She didn't care though; she was expecting to have to sleep on the hard deck. The best she had hoped for was to use a coil of rope as a pillow. Now she was laying still in the hammock, the waves slowly rocking her from side to side.

It hadn't been long before the events of the day finally caught up to her. As she laid, aches and pains slowly made themselves known. It was like they were seeping out of her bones and muscles, and she couldn't believe just how much they hurt. She had already inspected herself for injuries, and found a few nasty looking bruises. She didn't know if they were from her fight with the human lady, or with the penguins on the dock. Either way, she new that between both conflicts and her long travel across Long Island, she was exhausted.

_"It's just as important to rest once in a while as it is work hard," mom said. "All work and no play makes Marlene a dull otter."_

She had always been a harder worker than her brothers. They tended to fool around, as boys often do. They splashed in the river and scared away the morning's catch when her father and her were fishing. They play fought with the sticks that she had collected for constructing shelter. They always seemed to have more fun than she ever did.

_"Come play with us, Marley!" called her brothers as she struggled to pick up the sticks they had strewn about. "You know you want to!"_

She wondered what her family would think of her now. She was on a stolen fishing boat, being driven by a crazy penguin. She was on her way to confront a great evil. She was on an adventure. Her aching bones constituted that fact.

Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through her neck. She felt there and to her surprise noticed that there was a small cut. It was hardly deep enough to bleed, but it still stung. She realized again that only her thin fur and paper skin had been between that knife and her jugular. Only an inch had separated her from life and death. She curled into a ball, wondering if she should have just continued relaxing at the zoo.

_"My girl ain't fragile!" she heard her dad say. Mom had her arms crossed, looking sternly back at her husband. "She's more than ready to come hunting with me and the guys! She's already proven herself on our fishing trips. She hauls back more than I do, most of the time."_

Marlene had never gotten a chance to go hunting with her dad. It was shortly thereafter they had been taken into captivity. There was nothing to hunt in that cage, no rodents, no bugs, no fish.

_"Would you cut that out, Marlene?" scolded dad, looking down at her, paws on his hips. "You can't hunt what's already dead. That's just not right."_

Marlene shook her head. She remembered attempting to pounce on a dead clam that had just been tossed in the habitat, claiming that it was actually alive and might have been able to fight back. She remembered her dad said it because he was stressed. Her eldest brother had just been taken a few hours ago, at that point.

Marlene tried to clear her head of those memories. She needed to focus on the task at hand.

She wondered where they would end up. Were they going directly to Antarctica, or were they going to Denmark? Was Sarge going to attempt to retrieve the Sun again? If he was going directly there, would they try to stop him? Marlene suddenly didn't like the idea of going on this adventure. Antarctica would be cold. Too cold for an Asian otter. She didn't like the cold. Was it the cold she was afraid of encountering, or was it Sarge and his henchmen?

She was thinking about way too much at once. She tried her best to clear her head again. This time she was a little more successful. She heard the sound of the waves lapping up against the side of the boat again. She sighed.

It wasn't apparent to her at first, but she thought she heard a shuffling somewhere nearby. At first she thought it was just something in the room shifting from the rocking of the boat. It wasn't until she heard a knocking that she perked her ears up and began looking around the room.

It was pitch black. The only window rested just above the surface of the water and the moonlight was blocked out by the eerie fog. She held her breath, waiting for the next sign of the noise.

Another knock. Marlene couldn't help but feel a little nervous. It wasn't the first time a strange noise had proven itself to be a threat to her. She slid out of the hammock. It was a little further to the floor than she had thought and she stumbled as she hit the planks, making them creak.

The knock was still there. It was getting louder. Judging by its irregularity, Marlene knew it wasn't just something tapping up against the wall from the rocking of the boat. She felt along the wall near the door for the lamp she knew she saw on the way into the room. Her heart accelerated a bit as the knocking continued.

"Private?" she decided to ask the darkness. No answer. Her hand finally felt the wall sconce she had been looking for, and she clicked it on. The ancient bulb sparked to life, giving a very dim light. Marlene was still thankful for it.

After a moment she had made out the room. There was nothing there. Only a small desk, a trunk, a wardrobe, and the hammock. She still heard the knocking, and her best guess told her it had to be coming from this room. The otter remained on edge.

Straining her ears, Marlene found the knocking seeming to be coming from the trunk. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as she tiptoed over. It was latched shut, but now she realized that the trunk was shaking slightly, banging up against the wall every so often, producing the knocking noise. With a shaky paw she undid the latch. Before she could even think to try to open the lid, however, it flew open.

A flurry of white and gray spilled onto the floor in front of her. It was Julien, and he was taking in huge, greedy lungfuls of air.

"Julien!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air, "I should have known it was you!"

Julien didn't say anything, but continued gasping heavily.

"How long have you been in that trunk?"

"I.. am not... knowing..." he heaved. Marlene walked over to the trunk and noticed a rubber seal around both the edges of the lid and where it closed, presumably to make it watertight. Unfortunately for Julien, it had also been airtight.

"De king was panicking after it wasn't opening again," Julien said, standing up. He had finally stopped gasping, but was still breathing heavily. Marlene noticed his fur was still in shambles. His face had lines of dirt on it and his crown, though it was ragged before, was now completely missing.

"What are you doing here, anyway? Skipper asked you to go back to the zoo!" The otter said, angrily. Julien rubbed the back of his head and smiled awkwardly.

"I was thinking you might be needing de king's help in fighting de evil-penguins?" he offered.

"Ugh! I can't believe you. You scared the crap out of me!" Marlene was mad. She knew Julien had not really done anything wrong, but she had really thought she was in danger again.

"So..." Julien whistled, "What is der to do on dis stinking boat, anyway? It smells like Mort after he fell in the sewer." Julien held his nose.

Marlene wasn't amused. She crossed her arms and said simply, "I'm going to tell Skipper you're here."

Suddenly, Julien looked scared. He grabbed her paw and tugged lightly as she turned to leave.

"There is no need to be hasty," he said. "There is being no reason dat Skipper needs to know..."

"That you're here? He's already got me to deal with. He'll want to know if he's got another stowaway."

Julien didn't say a word for a moment, but just looked at Marlene. The dim, flickering light from the sconce illuminated his face in such a way that made him seem young; innocent. The light danced in the lemur's hazel eyes as Marlene realized he was pleading with her not to go tell Skipper. Suddenly she looked down and noticed that he was still holding her paw in his. She yanked it away, noticing an awkward smile from the lemur king.

"Are you afraid of him knowing you're here, or something?" she asked, crossing her arms again.

"Of dat fishy penguin?" Julien scoffed as if he was offended. "Of course de king is not afraid."

"Then whats the big idea hiding in the trunk like that? You don't usually hide around."

"If Skipper had been seeing me sneak onto dis boat, he would have kicked me right back to de zoo."

Marlene had to agree with that. She knew that she was on this crazy adventure more by force than by Skipper choosing to allow her to go. If she hadn't gotten in that fight with the humans in the park, he probably would have forced her to go back to the zoo as well.

"Well you're here now," said the otter, provoking another smile from the lemur. "I seriously doubt Skipper would make you swim all the way back to Long Island."

Marlene let loose a small chuckle, and Julien's hoarse laugh followed. She couldn't help it – but she gained some level of comfort from him being on the boat. She was friends with the penguins, of course, but they were never super close. With Manfredi and Sarge in the picture now, she felt disconnected from them entirely. Marlene thought briefly back to her discussion with the Lemur King all those weeks ago when she had been thinking about adventure. She wondered if he would be easier to talk to than the penguins.

"So why did you follow us instead of going back to the zoo?" Marlene asked. Surprisingly, Julien looked awkward and rubbed the back of his head with his paw. He smiled widely, but Marlene could see that it was no longer genuine.

"Uh... you see... de King wants to be seeing the world... and..."

"Pfft," interrupted Marlene. "What's the _real_ reason you're here? I mean, coming out here without Maurice or Mort, hiding in that trunk, ruining your fur... it's just not like you Julien."

Julien averted his eyes to the ground, away from Marlene's, but didn't say anything. Marlene cocked her head to the side in confusion. What was he hiding from her?

"It is being you," he said suddenly, not looking up. The realization hit Marlene like a ton of bricks. She didn't want to believe it though. He couldn't be suggesting... that.

"You've been following me around for the last month," she thought aloud, "and you always showed up right when I needed your help the most..."

"I was trying to protect you, Marlene." he said. Marlene couldn't help but shiver slightly at the sound of her name. She couldn't tell if it was because she was creeped out or flattered, though. As Julien finally glanced up at her again, she felt her cheeks burn and decided to avert her own eyes. She looked out the window by the hammock and began inching that way.

"Dat is why I am being here," spilled Julien. "It is like I have dis feeling inside my chest whenever you are around. Sometimes I just want to rip it out so my mind isn't exploding with a bazillion thoughts when I am watching you. I am not knowing what dis feeling is, and sometimes I hate it. But den its like I can't get enough of it, you know? I don't really like talking to my chunky-monkey Maurice at all, but talking to you gives me the worms in the tummy. Listening to you is like listening to my favorite songs, but my words are being caught in my throat when I am trying to talk back."

Marlene still hadn't looked back at the lemur king. Her heart rate was increasing slightly now, though. She continued to inch closer to the window. She wasn't sure what to say back. It all made sense. His random visits to her habbitat, her random bumping into him throughout the zoo, him coming to her rescue, him following her out of the zoo. Why hadn't she realized this ages ago? The whole situation now was beginning to make her a little uncomfortable.

Her face was set ablaze when Julien grabbed her shoulder and turned her around, making her eyes meet his. They stayed this way for a little while, Marlene frozen by Julien's gaze. She had never noticed how beautiful his eyes were until this moment. The dim light was reflecting off of them, giving them a warm glow. The warm glow hugged his face as well. With his fur matted, and ruined and his crown missing, Marlene saw an entire new side of Julien she had never seen before. He was beautiful. Her breath escaped her.

"I think I am loving you, Marlene," cooed the lemur. His face inched closer to hers. She could feel his paws shaking where he held her shoulder. She could feel her own paws shaking, her heart pounding in her ears. Her gut tied itself into a knot. She found it hard to breathe.

It wasn't until she felt his hot breath on her own face that she pulled away. She wriggled out of his grasp, immediately backing away from him. She felt her back hit the wall behind her.

"I... I, uhh... need to get some fresh air," she lied, pointing towards the exit. She managed the courage to look back up at the lemur for a moment. She wish she hadn't. His arms limp, his mouth twisted into a frown, his big eyes glazed over with forming tears. She felt hot and uncomfortable. She slipped out of the room and closed the door behind her before collapsing against the wall adjacent to the captain's quarters.

_Julien... loves me?_ She wondered. The only thing she could think of was his saddened face. It broke her heart.

* * *

**~Author's Note~ **If you read the whole story up to this point, you know this chapter was going to happen eventually. I'm not very good at writing this kind of stuff, so please let me know what you think! (On a side note, why is this one of the only stories that has a Julien/Marlene pairing?)


	33. Lamentation

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 33 – Lamentation**

** HE HAD HOPED THE PAIN WOULD SUBSIDE.**

It didn't. He lay there, mouth agape. He couldn't move anything. Each time he tried to inch his flippers off of the cold planks below him, sharp pains would shoot through his head and travel down his spine. It was like the electrical impulses themselves were scorching his nerves. Not to long ago he had tried his best to move his right flipper far enough to get it off of chest. The action was excruciating. His muscles burned and his head felt like it was going to explode. It wasn't until a strange numbness overtook his flipper did he stop. A few moments later he realized that, despite all his effort, it was still resting flat on his chest.

So he just laid there. He honestly did not know what would happen as a result of the shock he forced upon himself. Ever since his transformation, he had been reminded of how much electricity was a threat to him. The thought of it coursing, unhindered through his circuits, destroying resistors and blowing up voltage regulators on the way quite scared him. It was a sacrifice he needed to make, though. If he hadn't have used himself as the bridge to hot wire the boat, they would have lost his target long ago.

As he laid there, he listened intently with his senses. His vision was gone... or mostly gone. Now, all he saw was a dim, flashing red light. It seemed to be coming from the back of his skull. Each time it flashed, however, he was able to make out a blurry, dark scene. It was like watching a very slow slide show of pictures. However, the rest of his senses seemed to have increased in sensitivity exponentially.

He could taste the salt from the ocean on his tongue. He felt the cool breeze blow through his feathers. He could hear the sounds of the waves lapping up against the boat, the whistling of the wind through the cracked windshield. He heard the slightest creak of the rotten boards underneath him. He even heard a squeak of a rat he could have sworn was a deck below him. Of course he could hear all of the conversations around him.

* * *

_ "Ringtail!" he heard Skipper shout. He sounded angry. "What are you doing here?"_

_"I told you he wouldn't be happy to see you," scoffed Marlene._

_ "You see, penguin, de king was hoping to use his kingly skills in de combat and stuff to help in your quest," replied the lanky lemur. The immobile penguin's vision flashed, though nobody was within his field of view. _

_ "Fish and chips, I told you to go back to the zoo with Phil! Phil isn't here too, is he?" _

_ He heard a shifting of fur, like Julien was shaking his head. "He was telling me dat he was okay to find his own way back through de sewers, and dat I should be accompanying you on your adventure."_

_"This isn't an adventure, Ringtail. It's a matter of life and death." Skipper replied solemnly. "You made a mistake coming on this boat."_

_ "Pfft," Julien said, and the immobile penguin imagined him shaking his hands towards Skipper, "Life and death, eh? No big deal. You see, de king is a master of both of these things, and..."_

_ He heard the lemur trail off and a sudden sound of grunting. There was a brief struggle before he could hear Julien choking. His vision flashed, and he got a glimpse of Skipper lifting the lemur fully off the ground a few inches, while holding his throat tightly with both flippers. Julien was kicking wildly and attempting to pry the penguin's flippers from his throat. _

_ "This isn't a _game_, Julien," growled the flat-headed penguin through a clenched beak. "I'm talking about the lives of _real_ animals, _real _people. You try to watch their lives end before their time is up, while there is nothing you can do about it. _You _shoot the soldier you once knew as a friend because if you don't, he shoots you first. Then you talk to me about _life and death_!"_

_ The penguin's vision flashed, and he caught a glimpse of Marlene now joined in with Julien's effort to remove Skipper's iron grip from his throat._

_ "Skipper, you're choking him!" pleaded the Otter. _

_ The penguin heard Julien drop to the floor, sputtering wildly for breath. The robot penguin then heard the leader-penguin jump back onto his perch atop the driver's seat. _

_ "You weren't needing to have been strangling me!" said Julien, sounding like he was now mad. _

_ "Yeah, Skipper," agreed Marlene, "that was a little harsh."_

_ Another flash, this time revealing the two mammals standing near the door to the cabin. Julien's hands were still rubbing his throat._

_ "If you thought that was harsh, then you've got a lot more to worry about in the next few days than just me," said Skipper. "Where we're going, it _will _be a matter of life and death. Sarge won't stop before he's killed all of us and stolen back the Sun. It's either going to be him or us. I hope you realize that."_

_ The red light now revealed a surprised, nearly scared look on Julien's face. Marlene, however, still looked determined._

_ "This whole 'adventure' business both of you keep talking about, you need to stop it," continued Skipper. "This isn't some trip through the field, picking posies. We have a real battle on our hands, and since you two were both so willing to join along, you're going to have to help us fight."_

_ One last flash showed the two mammals leaving the cabin, speechless._

* * *

That wasn't the only thing he had heard, laying in the prison of his own body and mind, pain preventing him from moving. He heard when Skipper and Rico changed shifts driving the boat. For the few days they had been on the ocean, and from what he could tell, Skipper had been navigating overnight and into the early afternoon, and Rico took over from then until sunset. The long hours of the few days had seemed like it had been taking its toll on Skipper, and from the glimpses he managed to catch of him, he looked tired. Manfredi briefly wondered why Skipper didn't ask for more help in driving the vessel.

There was that other penguin, for instance. Private. He seemed like he would make a great navigator, but Skipper refused to let him touch the wheel of the boat, even when the younger penguin had asked.

* * *

_"You look awfully tired, Skippah," offered Private as Skipper went to take his shift from Rico. "Would you like some rest tonight? I could drive..."_

_ Private's voice trailed off as if Skipper was already shaking his head in disapproval. _

_ "Negative, soldier," answered Skipper, confirming Manfredi's belief. "Driving a boat through the night is one of the hardest things to do. It would be easy to slip up and make a mistake, and one mistake could cost us Kowalski. If we loose track of Sarge's boat, we could be in big trouble."_

_ "But Skippah," argued the specialist, "We know where Sarge is going. He's going straight to Antarctica, isn't he? All I need to do is point the compass straight south, and..."_

_ "Negative," repeated the leader, more slowly this time._

_ "You're so tired, though, and we need only go in a straight line." continued the younger penguin. Manfredi suddenly heard Skipper's flipper land a slap across Private's face. Private whimpered._

_ "What happens if we loose track of Kowalski, and they dump him into the Atlantic? We'd have no chance of finding him then, and he'd drown. Is that what you want?" _

_ "No, Sir," mumbled Private. Manfredi couldn't see him, but it sounded like he was rubbing his face where he was slapped._

_ "You're not afraid I'm going to push Manfredi off the side of the boat if you rest, are you?" asked Private after a few moments. Skipper didn't respond immediately._

_ "Why would you do that?" asked the leader._

_ "I wouldn't. It just seems like you are very protective of him, being your lost lost teammate and all." _

_ "He wasn't just my teammate, Private." said Skipper, sternly. "He was my brother in arms. We fought to save the world together."_

_ The immobile penguin heard a agreeing grunt from the smaller penguin. "Do you think he'll pull through?" he asked, "I mean, its already been three days. He's still not breathing, and he hadn't been able to eat for several days. Don't you think he's going to die of starvation or something soon?"_

_ "It's possible," returned the flat-headed penguin, "but like I said before, he's been through a lot already. After he's lost so much, I seriously doubt he'd want it to end now, right before he gets a chance to confront the one penguin who took it all from him."_

* * *

That conversation had only been a few hours ago. Private had a point about the paralyzed penguin's health. Manfredi knew he had a built in oxygen supply. It was intertwined with the rest of his robotic parts and was slowly adding oxygen to his bloodstream while he was unable to breath. The hunger was another issue though. It wasn't until recently that he realized he hadn't eaten in weeks. His stomach cramped up, giving him a feeling of emptiness. He wanted to rip out his stomach. He had enough pain to deal with already.

Skipper was right. He had never actually wanted it to end. He knew the risk there was in shocking himself. He just wanted some way to end the pain, even temporarily. His plan backfired, though – now he was in physical pain in addition to the emotional and psychological pains he had been struggling with. The only thing that would relieve him of it was killing his target, he thought. Stabbing him right through the heart.

From what he could tell, it was now dark. Marlene had stopped by a little while ago to drop off some food for Skipper and then left to go to bed. The group hadn't had chance to pack properly for their trip before they left. All the had as a result was a few dozen cans of what looked and smelled like tuna to the robot-penguin. He remembered them being inside of Skipper's backpack. Marlene had said that if they rationed the cans out, they could probably make it to Antarctica, but they would have none left for when they arrived. Skipper said they would be able to fish when they got there, though.

For the first night Skipper had not eaten his tuna. The effect of several days without any nourishment settled in on him though, and on the second night he ate greedily. Manfredi briefly wondered if he was going to eat the entire plate it had been served on. Tonight, though, Skipper did something different with his tuna.

Manfredi heard him hop down from the seat and he walked into his field of vision, holding the tuna in front of him. The smell became very strong, and his stomach wound itself into a knot. He had not eaten in a week and would have devoured the plate if he could have moved.

"Open wide," Skipper said, opening his already open bill a little more open. Skipper proceeded to gently place globs of the pasty tuna in the robotic penguin's mouth. He then tilted the penguin's head back, allowing the sustenance to slide gently down the immobile penguin's throat. Manfredi wondered if this was what it was like to be fed as a baby penguin.

Skipper continued this slow process until most of the tuna was gone. Manfredi was thankful for the food. He wished he could give Skipper some sort of thanks, some sort of feedback to let him know that he was still listening. He tried to move his beak, but it felt as though it exploded and fiery shots of pain pinged throughout his face.

Feeling hopeless, Manfredi watched Skipper eat the last few bites of the tuna. The leader then proceeded to jump back onto his perch and out of the his sight. Manfredi listened intently for any further noise from him, but was only greeted by the whistling of the wind and the purring of the engine. The paralyzed penguin now wished that he had never touched himself with that damn electricity.

He wouldn't let it get the better of him though. Skipper's words with Private earlier had struck him true. He wasn't going to give up now. Not after going through so much. Not after loosing his family. Not after watching Johnson get back stabbed. Not after his travel around the globe, searching for any hint that might lead him to his target. Not after he killed that pigeon in cold blood. It was all too much... too much to be for nothing.

He wanted to see his target's eyes; they would be empty and filled with fear. He wanted to pull the dagger back and watch the crimson blood run off of the blade. He wanted to make all the lives that had been lost because of his target actually mean something.

He could feel a warmness spreading through his body now. Whether it was from his rekindled determination or the tuna in his belly he didn't know. It had almost a disorientating effect though, and he felt dizzy. The boat seemed to be swaying back and forth by a ludicrous amount. It was like nothing he had ever experienced before.

Concentrating, he tried to move his flipper one more time. To his surprise, it tumbled off his chest and onto the floorboards.


	34. Training

Skipper's log. 01:00 Hours on August the twenty ninth.

_"I killed a penguin today._

_ "I knew it was inevitable, like some sneaking shadow that was eventually going to catch up to me. I knew that following Manfredi and betraying the Penguin Army meant that it was only a matter of time. The moment I charged out of that base I knew I was throwing my life into turmoil. I knew that Sarge and his army wouldn't stop looking for me until I was dead. I knew that meant I was going to have to shoot first eventually._

_ "It was a young cadet. He wasn't much unlike that one guard we knocked out when we escaped the fortress for the second time. He was obviously much younger than Johnson and still had some of his down feathers. Eric Waddlefoot was his name, according to what was inscribed on his rifle. _

_ "He was just a scout, sent out into the woods to look for us. He didn't have any real combat training and only wanted to avoid confrontation. I spotted him looking at us through some trees at our camp. He looked scared when I noticed him, then aimed his rifle directly at me. I could tell his flippers were shaking, but he didn't pull the trigger._

_ "That's when I grabbed my rifle and shot first. The bullet ricocheted off of the tree he was hiding behind. He got scared and bolted away from us. Manfredi shouted at me to gun him down. I already knew that I had to, though. If I didn't, he'd get back to base and tell Fishslader exactly where we were. _

_ "I remember thinking I'd just try to get him in the leg, or maybe the flipper. Something non-vital, but enough to get him to stop running. I watched in horror as he fell to the forest floor, though. My shot had passed directly through his chest._

_ "When I went over to him, he tried to say something to me with his last breath, but it had only come out as a gurgle. There was blood pouring from his wound, and I'm sure I had to have gotten him directly in the heart. His eyes fell empty after that, and he went silent. I felt sick._

_ "I am a killer._

_ "We all stood around after that, like nobody knew what to say or do. We just watched the blood soak into the soil. After some time Manfredi tried to comfort me. He told me that if I had not have shot first, I would have died. Manfredi didn't understand, though. Eric Waddlefoot was a scout. You don't shoot at scouts. Besides, it's not like Manfredi was the one who pulled the trigger._

_ "Johnson was terrified by the whole incident. It was a wake up call to him, I'm sure. His preconceptions about war have probably just been burnt down into a smoldering heap. Even after all we had been through, it was like it took the actual sight of death to wake him up. _

_ "Manfredi encouraged us to move as fast as we could after that. It would only have been a matter of time before more penguins came looking for the source of the gunshots. Besides, we were on our way to hitch a ride on a research vessel. I'm sitting on it now. We need to get to Antarctica as fast as possible, and this is our only option._

_ "I can't get the image of that young penguin's empty eyes out of my head, though. He probably had a family – older brothers or sisters, mom and dad. Sarge probably convinced him to run away from home and enlist. The boy still had his down feathers, for crying out loud!_

_"And I killed him. How many more penguins will I have to kill before this is over?"_

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 34 – Training**

Marlene looked across the deck at Rico and Private. They were sparring, getting ready to confront Sarge in Antarctica. Rico had a bulky, wooden plank in his hands and was swinging it wildly at Private, who was easily dodging the blows. Rico swung high, Private ducked. Rico swung low, Private jumped. Rico swung from the side, Private rolled. It was almost as if the entire act was choreographed, Rico and Private being dancers up on the stage. Private seemed to know Rico's next move before the maniacal penguin even began to swing the plank. It was only a matter of time before Private found an opening to kick the plank out of Rico's hand.

"_Yack, yack!_" exclaimed Rico, clapping his flippers. Private beamed. Rico wasn't done, though, and Private looked just in time to block a powerful chop from the weapons expert. Just like that the two were off again, flipping around the deck, kicking and punching.

Marlene redirected her attention to Julien, who was sitting on the far side of the deck from her. He was also watching the two penguins train. They hadn't spoken much in the few days that had passed since their conversation in the captain's cabin.

She was still having trouble comprehending Julien's words. He loved her? She was scared by the idea, and she didn't want to believe it. At the same time, however, she was intrigued by the idea s well. She wanted to know how long Julien had had feelings for her. She wanted to ask him more about what he thought about her. She also wanted to know more about him. She wondered what it was like to have been king of an entire lemur society on Madagascar. She also pondered why Julien had given it all up to come to Central Park Zoo.

Julien looked up from the penguins and their gaze met for only a moment. Marlene pretended to be looking at something in the distance behind the lemur before redirecting her attention back to the penguins. Rico managed to land a big hit on Private, which sent him flying back. The small penguin was back on his feet in no time, though.

She didn't understand why she felt so awkward looking him in the eyes now. She never remembered being intimidated by the ring-tailed lemur. Maybe she didn't feel as comfortable around him now that he had confessed his feelings for her? Each time they had made eye contact, though, she had felt her cheeks grow warm and he had always tried to pretend she was looking at something else. She felt as though she wanted to look him in the eyes, but she didn't want to get noticed when she did. Was that why Julien had been spying on her for weeks?

She shook her head. Once again, she had let her mind run loose. It was time to focus on what she had come up here to do in the first place.

"Hey, guys!" she called to the penguins. They stopped sparring at once and looked at her.

"Oh, hey, Marlene," returned Private, "What's new?"

"So," she began, "since we're all going to Antarctica to battle off Sarge and his men and what-not, I was wondering if you guys could give me the basic combat training rundown? You know, like hand-to-hand stuff."

Private nodded. "Skippah probably wouldn't normally approve of us teaching our techniques to anyone, but I think we have a bloody right reason now."

Rico nodded vigorously. "_Julien,_" he wheezed, pointing to the lemur.

"Good call, Rico," agreed Private. "You should probably learn some our tricks too, Julien."

"Me?" said Julien, pointing to himself. "Well, uh... you see..."

"Get your butt over here, Julien," interrupted Marlene. "You know darn well that if we don't get any training we'll be entirely useless when we get to Antarctica." Without another word Julien joined the three in the middle of the deck. He lined up across from Rico whereas Private was lined up across from Marlene.

"Okay," said Private, beginning the lesson, "First things first: fighting stances." Private and Rico simultaneously brought their flippers in front of their faces, arched their backs slightly, and bent their knees only a touch. It made them look intimidating; like a collaborative unstoppable force. However, they still looked flexible enough to do flips and agile maneuvers.

"Try to model yourself directly after us," instructed Private. Marlene nodded and then brought her paws up in front of her face, balling her paws into fists. She bent her knees a little bit, and furrowed her brow in determination.

"Try to relax a bit, Marlene." Private instructed. He lowered her paws a little and raised her chin with his flipper. "You need to be able see, as well, over your own arms. Oh, and try to breathe a bit, it's like you're holding your breath." Marlene let loose the breath she didn't know she had been holding.

"_Loose knees!_" came Rico's instruction to Julien. Marlene looked over at the lemur to see the maniacal penguin attempting to push Julien's shoulder's down and get him to bend his knees a bit.

"Nothing is being wrong with my knees!" argued Julien, attempting to swat Rico's flippers away.

"_humph!_" replied the scarred penguin, taking a few steps back from the lemur. "_Fighting stance_," he then instructed, and Julien raised his paws in front of his face. He had a slightly confused look on his face. Without warning, Rico charged Julien and pushed him hard, knocking him to the planks.

"Ow!" cried Julien, dazed.

"_Gravity, center of stance. No gravity!_" explained Rico, who then laughed.

"If you keep your knees straight, your center of gravity will be too high," clarified Private, "making you very easy to knock over. Let's see if you can stay standing, Marlene."

"What? Okay..." responded Marlene worriedly. She went back into the stance and clenched her fists tightly.

Rico lined up across from her and then charged. She tried to focus on keeping her knees loose, but she wound up flinching as the penguin extended his flippers and locking up. She fell to the ground and hit hard, just like Julien had.

Private offered her a hand to get back up. "It's okay," he said, "Rico's strong. Sometimes he even still gets me."

"This might be harder than I thought," complained the Asian otter, rubbing her bottom. Private chuckled.

"You should have seen our first few days of training with the Skippah. I don't think he realized there was such a thing as a rookie!"

"Was he really hard on you guys for the first few days?" asked Marlene.

"Oh yeah," answered Private, "it was like he was expecting far more out of us right from the beginning than we could. Thankfully over time he learned that we had a lot to learn, so he slowed down a bit."

"Hmm," wondered Marlene, scratching her head. "D'you maybe think he was trying to prepare you for something really fast? Like, if this 'Sun' thing ever cropped again, you'd be ready to help?"

Marlene heard a grunt from her left. She glanced over and saw Julien on the floor again, with Rico chuckling. The ring-tailed lemur hopped up again and took his position.

"C'mon," he taunted, "you won't be knocking me down this time!"

Rico charged again, but Julien ducked under his push. Before Julien could even smile about his victory, however, a webbed foot collided with the side of his face and he flew sideways.

"_No, no!_" wheezed Rico, "_not good stance. Easy target!_" Julien grumbled.

"That might be true, Marlene," answered Private, finally. He had also been watching the pair. "Now that you bring it up, Skippah always had a strong sense of paranoia about him when we first came to the zoo. I mean, he still has it now, but back then it was just ridiculous. It makes me wonder why he's so unwilling to let us help now."

"That's true," agreed Marlene.

"Mostly when he went in ran away from the zoo after Manfredi. It seems like if he was training us to help him when Sarge came back for the Sun, he'd want us to help find Manfredi."

"Yeah."

Marlene watched Rico charge at Julien again. Julien took the blow this time, and though he stumbled a few steps backward, he remained standing. Rico smiled towards him, and he smiled back.

"We should probably get back to training," instructed the round penguin. "Skippah says we've only got about ten days until we reach Antarctica."

Marlene nodded. "Any little bit will help."

Private took his fighting stance, and Marlene knew that he was signaling her to do the same. She complied and prepared herself for the blow she knew Private was about to deliver. Private charged, and though she tried her best to remain upright, she toppled like a tower of cards.

Private laughed.

* * *

**~Author's Note:** Hope everyone is enjoying the new year. This chapter was more of a transitional one, so it was a tad short. Should be enjoyable enough, though.

Big thanks to long-term loyal readers TheSkySpritsTalentShow, Sarahbelle Saunders, and Penguinsfan19. You guys are the ones that keep me going with your awesome reviews!


	35. Anguish

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 35 – Anguish**

**MANFREDI HAD LOST TRACK OF THE DAYS.**

He had tried to pay close attention to the time that had passed. He looked for signs that the day was ending and night was beginning. He tried to take in any hint of a sunset or sunrise. He listened for when Rico and Skipper swapped shifts at wheel of the boat. Then, he tried to piece these events together into a time line. Unfortunately for him, though, he found himself drifting in and out of sleep fairly often.

Sometimes he would fall asleep in the evening, and wake up in the evening. He couldn't tell if it was the same day or the next day, though. Sometimes he'd fall asleep when Skipper was at the wheel, and wake up when Rico was. Sometimes he'd only be out for a few seconds. Either way, he knew it had been at least a week since they had set off from the New York harbor.

He didn't want to be immobilized for this long. He figured if the shock didn't kill him, it wouldn't have surmised him for more than a few days. Now, he had been in this coma for almost a week. Hell, if Skipper hadn't been feeding him, he would have died of hunger by now.

Even though he was mentally active the robotic penguin still couldn't muster up the courage to move; it hurt far too much. He wanted to move, though. After all, there must be some reason he was still alive. He wouldn't have survived that shock if there wasn't something behind him, pushing him forward. Whether that was something spiritual or just the hardiness of his own body, he didn't know. Either way, he would never be able to avenge Johnson if he couldn't move.

Johnson. He couldn't stop thinking about him. With so much empty time to fill, he let his mind roam free. He started with the only thing he could think of: his fiancee and child. He remembered Sarah's emerald green eyes, clean beak; the ivory egg. Normally the memory would have torn at his heart, and made him cry. Now, however, he was already broken, laying on the cold planks of the helm of this decrepit boat. Rather than feeling the need to cry, he felt some strange warmness at the memory of his loved one. Her smile, her eyes gleaming in the Arctic sun. The feeling was foreign to him.

Each time he heard Skipper's voice, though, his thoughts were torn away from the warm memories and plunged back into the depths of his nightmares. Each time Skipper spoke, he found himself standing in the entrance to the Penguin Army's base, ready to run back in after Johnson. The scenario replayed in his head like clockwork. It was like a horror movie he had seen many times already, but yet still scared him.

Briefly, he wondered when he should tell Skipper about what had happened after they had been separated on that day. He thought back to when they were sitting in the alleyway in New York, and Skipper had so willingly told him his story. He remembered denying Skipper the same privilege, and that he would spill his memories when the time was right.

Maybe now was the right time. He hadn't wanted to bear the retelling of the memory. He tried to push it to the back of his mind, but now that his mind was unleashed, he found it impossible to not dig back up. He could barely move, but he knew now was the time to confess.

Finding some courage, but still expecting the resulting pain, he slowly pushed himself up onto his flippers. Sliding back a few inches, he propped himself up against the wall that was behind him. His muscles convulsed at the sudden excursion. He hadn't realized he had grunted loudly and attracted Skipper's attention.

The robotic penguin's vision flashed, and he caught a snapshot of Skipper, standing over him. His brow was furrowed and his head was cocked to the head in confusion. He was saying something, but for some reason Manfredi could only a loud ringing in his ears. Now was the time.

He reached a shaky flipper up to his mechanical eye and pressed it firmly down. Something clicked, and his red vision faded to blackness. Moments later, he was seeing his own memories, almost reliving them. He knew that on the other side of the vision, though, his eye was projecting the same image. He felt a flipper adjust his head slightly before he lost the feeling throughout his body entirely. He knew Skipper had adjusted the projected image to be at a better angle. Slowly, the robotic penguin slipped from reality entirely.

Moments later he felt a cool wind, heard an distant explosion, smelt blood, and knew he was reliving his past...

* * *

"Manfredi!" Skipper called, the clutching the glowing cylinder tightly in his hands. "We've got to go. Now!"

"I'm not leaving without Johnson!" Manfredi called back, heading away from the flat-headed penguin. The building around them was collapsing, and there was no time to argue.

"Johnson is dead, let it go!" Skipper shouted, looking desperate. "Now c'mon!"

"No penguin left behind!" returned the larger penguin as a large chunk of the ceiling fell between them. It broke apart on the concrete floor, sending debris everywhere. Manfredi shielded his face from the shards of rock, and then looked at the newly formed barricade of concrete. The entire ceiling had collapsed, separating him from Skipper entirely.

He thought he heard Skipper shouting something to him through the rock, but he was already running back into the unstable building. An explosion went off near him, and sent him stumbling sideways a few steps. His leg got caught on something soft, and he tripped head over heels. He looked back at the obstacle to see a bloodstained penguin body. A chill ran up his spine as he got back up, and then continued down the corridor.

The base was made of a lot of long, concrete pathways. The had been designed that way for maximum vision while walking down them and shorter travel times around the base. Unfortunately for Manfredi, that plan was also making it extremely hard to navigate to where he thought Johnson might be. He ran as fast as he could, holding his flippers over his head to shield himself from any falling rocks. Many of the passageways had already been destroyed by explosions or blocked off by cave-ins. Fortunately, he knew the base well, and weaved his way around the collapsing structure to get to the soldier's quarters.

Many of the small, porthole-like rooms had already been obliterated. Fortunately, Beta Squad's had remained mostly intact, and Manfredi, Skipper and Johnson's cabin was still safe enough to enter. Manfredi ripped open to hatch door and saw Johnson sitting inside, hunched over something.

"Johnson!" he cried over an explosion. The smaller penguin whipped around. He was clutching his journal against his chest and looked terrified. "We need to get out of here, now!" urged Manfredi, grabbing the shorter penguin's flipper.

"There's no way we can get out of here," shouted Johnson, dodging a rock that fell and blocked off the entrance to their cabin as they re-entered the hallway. "I'm so stupid for coming back."

"No time for feeling sorry now. There must be a way out," returned Manfredi, glancing up and down some passageways. He knew of only three routes that would take them out of the structure: the main entrance, a hatch in the roof, and the back gate to the firing range. Knowing the main entrance was already collapsed and the hatch would probably not be accessible, he devised the quickest way to get to the back of the fortress.

"This way," he instructed to Johnson, who was still holding his journal tightly. The pair made their way back down the corridor Manfredi had entered from. Sparks jumped from broken power lines, sharp rebarb stuck out of shattered concrete supports, and water from smashed water mains pooled around their feet. Most of the routes Manfredi had taken to get here were now blocked. It slowed them down, but they moved as fast as they could.

They rounded a corner as fast as they could and saw their goal. The back gate. Manfredi had never been more thankful in his life to see sunlight. It was locked with a simple chain link gate, but it was nothing he wouldn't be able to break down. It was then when he heard a voice.

"Manfredi, wait!" The burly penguin stopped and spun around, looking for the source of his name. His eyes came to rest on a penguin with a flat head and crystal blue eyes, his foot trapped underneath a rock, and his face bloodied. Manfredi recognized him instantly as Caspian Fishslader.

"Can you give us a hand?" the Sargent called. A few penguin soldiers were near him, trying to yank the concrete away. There were also a few other penguins that were trapped.

"Why would I give _you_ a hand?" shot back Manfredi, turning to make his escape. Johnson was already beating on the gate at the far end of the tunnel, trying to free the lock.

"Wait!" called Caspian again, more desperately. "You don't understand!"

"Understand what?" returned Manfredi, "that you killed my family and tried to take over the world?"

"No, no! There's going to be a massive explosion here any minute now. There's no way you could get out of range in time!"

"What?"

"The sun was hooked up to a giant reactor that converted its raw power into useable electricity," explained a penguin to Sarge's left. He was tall with red eyes, a black beak, and yellow feathers on his brow. The white feathers on his chest were stained with soot. "The Sun was the main power source, but its container was the main heat sink. The reactor is overheating and going into a critical meltdown because it was not properly disengaged before the Sun was removed. We're all going to be vaporized unless we get into shelter as soon as possible!"

Manfredi glanced around him as another explosion rocked the foundation. His eyes fell on the fish freezer that he, Skipper, and the other penguins had painstakingly built. He recalled making the concrete walls as he was told – twelve inches thick with steel rebarb and plating for support. It would be plenty of protection.

"Johnson, this way!" he called to the small penguin, who was hopelessly beating on the gate's padlock. Johnson complied, and the two made their way to the short steel hatch that led into the freezer. Manfredi yanked on the door, but it wouldn't budge.

"We need the sargent free to get in there," shouted the black-beaked penguin as another boulder landed near him, completely crushing one of his comrades. He gasped and began working more frantically to move the boulders off of Caspian. "Its eye scanner activated; only his eyes will let us in!"

Manfredi looked at the fancy lock on the door. He knew it had been implemented to stop the penguins from sneaking extra rations. Even with the place falling apart, Manfredi was sure it was still active. He wished it didn't exist. Without another thought, and knowing getting into the freezer was their only hope, he ran to help free Fishslader.

The boulder that was crushing the leader's foot was large, but with Manfredi's strength, they were able to roll it off. Caspian cried in pain as he looked at his smashed, webbed foot. Manfredi and the black-beaked penguin wasted no time, however, and dragged him across the floor as an explosion went off behind them. Manfredi wasn't sure if any of the other penguins had survived it after he felt the heat singe the feathers on the back of his head.

The black-beaked penguin shouted something to him but his ears were ringing from the explosion. He knew what was to be done though, and hoisted the Sargent up to the eye scanner and watched as a green light illuminated near the top of the door. As it did, though, the scanner itself received a power surge and detonated. Fishslader was unable to pull his face away in time and received the brunt of the explosion, while Manfredi felt a few shards of glass puncture his shoulder. Fishslader cried in agony, holding his face, as Manfredi dropped him to the ground.

Johnson pushed his way through the trio and pushed the door open, falling into the cold room behind it. Manfredi followed the red-eyed penguin into the freezer and looked behind him. There were no other penguins; they had all succumbed to the blast. There was only the Sargent, rolling on the ground just outside the door.

The tall penguin called something to him, but his ears were still ringing. The tall penguin then reached out for Caspian, attempting to pull him into the safety of the bunker-turned-freezer. Manfredi thought for a moment that he should shove the other penguin out of the way and close the door in the Sargent's face. He looked down at the weakened penguin, his foot broken, his face blackened. Some great amount of compassion overtook him, and he reached into the hallway to pull the penguin into the bunker.

"Manfredi, leave him!" he heard Johnson's voice too late. It was faint as he slammed the hatch shut, spinning the latch on it as fast as he could to secure it.

As if on cue, a massive shock wave cut through the freezer, knocking Manfredi off balance. A great rumbling followed, and several of the large ice blocks that were hanging from the ceiling crashed to the ground. The door hatch bowed inward from the force of the blast, but it held. As quickly as the explosion came, it left. And only silence took its place.

* * *

Manfredi's memory faded, flickering out. His red, flashing vision came back and he saw Skipper sitting on the floor next to him, his face solemn. He got up and turned to look at the robot-penguin.

"That's all that happened?" he asked, obviously wanting to know the rest. Manfredi tried to respond, but the searing pain returned in his face and limbs. He wanted to let Skipper know that he'd be able to show him what happened to Johnson, just not now. He was already fading into sleep – the act of projecting his memory for Skipper to see had been exhausting. He would rest for a while, and then project the rest for the leader penguin.

Skipper's concerned face faded into nothingness as peaceful sleep overtook the nostalgic penguin.

* * *

**~Author's Note****:** WOW! I have been dieing to write this chapter since about the time I started writing this story. Manfredi's story will be told in three parts; this is part one. I was going to make it one giant chapter, but after realizing how long this chapter is already, I've decided to split it up.

Anyway, hope you guys are enjoying and that you please review! I really look forward to any reviews I get, no matter how short! Thanks again for reading, though, and check back soon.


	36. Emotion

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 36 – Emotion**

**THE NIGHT AIR WAS COOL.**

Marlene felt it on her face as she emerged onto the deck of the boat. The fog that had plagued them since their departure a week ago had since disappeared, and the moon and the stars lit up the deck with a pale glow. Marlene looked up at them and felt a soft warmness inside – the fog had made her feel like she was trapped. The moonlight glowing on her salt-flecked fur was a welcome sight, and she took it in as if it was sunlight.

In the soft glow she saw Julien leaning over the side of the boat, staring out over the ocean. His figure was illuminated only by the moon's glow, creating sort of an eerie silhouette. From the way he slouched his shoulders and supported his weight on the railing, Marlene could tell he was tired. She walked over next to him and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Brought something for you," she said, holding up an open can of peaches. Julien smiled widely as he took the can.

"Finally, something worth eating around here," he exclaimed before shoving several of the peach slices into his mouth.

"Thought you might like those," said Marlene with a chuckle.

Julien nodded, and then swallowed loudly, "Its not that de king is not liking de fishy-food, its just dat I am watching my figure, you know."

"I guess it's an acquired taste," the Asian otter said with a smile. She knew darn well that Julien would have rather starved then continue trying to eat the tuna. Whether it was because he thought he was too good for it or he genuinely didn't like it, she didn't know.

"Where did you find dis, anyway?" asked Julien before munching on a few more peaches. The syrup they came in was dripping off his snout. He wiped it away with his free paw.

"There was a locked closet down in the cargo hold that Rico busted open," said Marlene and gestured to below the docks. "There were only a few cans of fruit in there, though, so I'd be careful not to eat it all in one night."

Julien looked at the half-empty can and then set it down on the planks near himself, obviously realizing he needed to conserve it. "Was der anything else in der?" he asked.

"Just a few jugs of water, which we really needed," explained the otter.

"Stupendous! Maybe now I can be washing dis salt out of my fur," said Julien as Marlene gave him a very stern look. "Only joking," he said, smiling awkwardly, then continued looking out over the ocean. Marlene tried to follow his eyes to see what he was looking at, but didn't find anything.

"Whatcha thinkin' about?" she asked him after a few moments of silence. He leaned over the side of the boat and pointed at something. Marlene also leaned over the railing and saw he was pointing at the name of the boat that had been painted on its side.

"De boat is called _S.S. Sweet Revenge_," he explained.

"Well that's," Marlene paused for a moment as she thought about it, "only fitting I suppose."

Julien nodded. "It is being Skipper's revenge, though. It is not being ours."

"Actually its not Skipper's revenge," corrected the otter, "It's Manfredi's."

"Dat psychotic robot?" Julien looked in the direction of the helm.

"Yeah. Skipper didn't tell me the full story, but apparently Sarge did a lot of horrible things to him. All I know for sure is that Sarge killed Johnson, who was Skipper and Manfredi's teammate."

Julien turned to look back at the brown otter. "So why are we being trapped on dis boat when its de robot's revenge? We are probably going to our dooms."

"Skipper obviously wants to help his teammate. They were close once," Marlene returned, "and there's the fact of this whole Sun thing going on. The whole planet may be in danger."

"And de other two fishy penguins... Rico and Private..."

"They're close to Skipper, so obviously they're going to stick with him to the end. They love him like family," Marlene interrupted. "And Kowalski too," she added.

Julien sighed, "It is not making sense."

"Why not?"

"Why would de other penguins risk der own tails for Skipper? I am not believing dat dis _family_ _love_ is being strong enough."

"But it is, Julien," offered Marlene, placing a hand on the lemur king's shoulder. "They want to help him confront Sarge and save the world. Do you have trouble seeing why?"

"Well," hesitated the gray lemur, "the answer is being yes."

"Why's that?" wondered Marlene. She had always felt committed to her parents and her brothers in a way that would make her jump off a cliff to save their lives. What made it hard for Julien to see that?

"Well," began Julien, "back on de Madagascar before de penguins came, I was a great king."

"Yeah?" Marlene urged Julien to continue. She had heard the stories of Julien's great endeavors before coming to the zoo, with the arrival of the four penguins on his island separating the two time periods. Julien continued speaking.

"I was de great king. It was amazing. We were having de crazy parties all de time, eating good fruit, and dancing every night. I was not seeing any problem with de other lemurs. De were seeing me as der king, and everyone was being happy.

"Den de fishy penguins came with dose New York giants..."

Marlene had also heard stories about how the zoo's hippopotamus, zebra, lion, and giraffe had broken out of the zoo one night. They got caught by animal control, and then shipped off to Africa. They were shipwrecked on Madagascar, where they had met with Julien and the lemurs. Julien still referred to them as the _New York giants_, the nickname they had received on their first arrival.

"You see, all of us lemurs have a common enemy in the fossa. Great bloodthirsty beats with snarling and growling and eating of our flesh," he pointed to his own fur. "When de New York giants came onto de Madagascar, dey brought with dem a feeling of safeness.

"De New York giants kept away de fossa for us while we pampered dem and tried to make dem stay with us. On a normal day we would be hiding almost all of de time. With de giants to protect us we were able to have parties so much more. It was being wonderful."

"I bet," offered Marlene.

"Den de penguins came and flew de New York giants away by using our crashed aircraft. I am not needing to be saying it, but it was as if de fossa knew the exact minute they left. Without de giants, we were, again, being helpless to defend ourselves against dem.

"We went back into hiding for most of the our days, and after a few lemurs disappeared, some of de other lemurs were thinking of throwing a revolt. De did just dat, you know, with de revolting."

"That's terrible!"

"Yeah. I was knowing it was bound to happen as soon as de giants left. My subjects wanted greater protection from de fossa den I could be giving. It is just seeming like de abandoned me when it was being most important to be standing togeder. I don't know what getting rid of me accomplished, but de left me for dead by the fossa's territory."

"How'd you get out?" asked Marlene, intrigued by the lemur's story.

"My chunky-monkey and dat annoying Mort came to save me," returned the lemur, eyes glazed over in memory. "De were de only ones still being loyal to me. De rest of dem abandoned me."

"Is that when you came to the zoo?"

"We knew we were not being welcome on de Madagascar anymore, so we found our way to de nearest mail-sendy place, and boxed ourselves to de Central Park Zoo."

Marlene nodded.

"I am not understanding why de fishy penguins are so willing to stand up to de evil penguins when it would be being easier to just abandon Skipper."

Marlene placed a hand on Julien's back and gave him a pat. He looked up at her, and Marlene noticed his eyes were no longer glazed over as he reminisced, but a single tear streaked down his snout, mixing with the sticky syrup from the peaches.

"I am meaning, my subjects abandoned me so easily..." he continued. His eyes shimmered in the moonlight, and Marlene saw his lip trembling. The sight made Marlene want to cry as well. She had never seen the lemur king even express the slightest sadness before, so it was like she was looking at a completely new person. That mixed with Julien's matted fur and dirt-caked face to give him a unique look about him. Rather than his usually kingly air, he now looked like a peasant. A real person with real problems; not some fairy tale.

The otter felt compassion for her friend. Julien was typically annoying and sometimes mean, and she usually tried to avoid being around him. Now, however, she wanted nothing more than to cheer him up. He was broken, and needed mending. Mending that she knew only she could give.

"Maybe they did leave you for dead out in the wilderness," she began, trying to keep her voice from quavering with sadness. "But Mort and Maurice still came to save you, right? I mean, they had been your right-hand lemurs from the beginning, and they stuck with you even though that meant they would also be outcast from the lemur society, right?"

"That is being true," said Julien thoughtfully. He sniffled and wiped his nose with his arm.

"They even came _all_ the way to Central Park zoo with you. And still today, they are your subjects. You don't even treat them all that great, and yet they still look up to you like you're the greatest thing ever. Don't forget that." Marlene managed a smile. Julien rubbed the tears out of his eyes and then did the same.

"Mort really likes my feet," said Julien simply.

"He sure does. And you know what? He probably wouldn't want to be the subject of any other lemur."

Julien still looked shaken, but his mouth was now upturned into a slight smile. Marlene walked up and pulled him into a hug. She felt him tense for a moment, but then he relaxed and wrapped his long arms around her. Marlene closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulder. They stayed this for what seemed like a long time before Julien finally pulled her away, but still held her shoulders.

"Thank you," he said. Marlene never thought she'd hear those words out of the lemur.

"It's what I do," offered the Asian otter back before gently brushing off the lemur's paws and redirecting her gaze out over the ocean.

A while passed before Julien spoke again. Marlene was listening to the waves lapping up against the side of the boat and thinking about what it must have been like to be left for dead by your own society when his voice cut through he cool air.

"Marlene," he said, "Do you remember when we left de zoo on dat adventure, shortly after you got there... why did you pretend dat you were loving me?"

Marlene's eyes went wide at the comment and she blushed slightly. Her mind raced to come up with an answer. Composing herself, she responded, "I don't really know Julien. I can't remember anything that happened that day."

"Oh..."

She knew that he was referring to the first and last time the penguins had invited her to come along on a mission. As soon as she had left the gates, she had blacked out. When she woke up, she was sitting in a cage and Julien was insisting that she had kidnapped him out of love. It was the first time that had ever happened, and the only time before she had followed the penguins to the docks only a week ago. She still didn't remember attacking that lady...

"I mean, I heard the stories that you guys told me, and I distinctly remember waking up in that cage," she continued, "Its only proof that I actually did go crazy. Kowalski told me once that it was some sort of cabin fever disorder. It's like I hate being confined, but I can't handle the feeling of freedom when I finally get out."

"I see. So it was not really being you who fell in love with me? It was like a different Marlene was der at the time?" said Julien thoughtfully.

"Pretty much. Honestly, I don't know why I haven't flipped out again since I attacked that lady in the park. You think I'd have done something stupid by now, right?"

"Yeah."

Silence passed again. Marlene couldn't stop the thoughts that were bouncing around in her head, though, and had to ask.

"Is this about..." she paused, "what happened the other night, in the cabin?"

Julien nodded, then looked away from her. He looked sad again. Marlene could tell he had made some sort of connection with her from that point on, even though she had been insane at the time. He had honestly thought that she had feelings for him. She felt a fluttery feeling in her stomach and wondered if she did too.

"I didn't mean to just barge out of the room like I did," she said, trying to console the ring-tail. "It was just a lot to take in at one time, you know? I hope I didn't hurt you."

"We had a saying on Madagascar. _If you are wanting de sweetest of fruits, you must be climbing de tallest of trees, and you might get hurt_. You were dat sweet fruit to me, Marlene. I am seeing now, though, dat de Marlene I'm in love with is not de real Marlene. Just being like a figment of my imagination. Dats okay, dough... I have fought with gravity before."

Marlene grabbed Julien's hands and their gaze met. "You can always try to climb that tree again, though," she said. "You showed me a different side of yourself tonight, Julien. A really down to earth side. Even though you can be a jerk sometimes, I think you're a pretty cool guy. It was just a lot for me to take in for one night, you know? When you told me you loved me, I didn't even know how to react. I didn't even have a chance to think about it."

Julien's yellow eyes glowed. "Is time being de issue?"

Marlene nodded. "You know," she said after a bit, "I never said I _didn't_ love you..."

At that, Julien pulled the otter into a tight bear hug. He nuzzled his snout down into her neck, rubbing off some of the peach syrup on her fur. She didn't care though, and wrapped her arms tightly around him, resting her own head on his. She felt the warmness of his body on hers, his aroma in her nostrils, his breathing in her ear. She felt a tingle go down her spine and like she never wanted to break the hug. She didn't even hear the sound of the hatch opening.

"_D'aww,_" cooed Rico suddenly startling the two mammals Immediately, they threw their arms into the air and took a few steps away from each other. Julien pretended to still be looking out at the moon, and Marlene folded her arms behind her back, her cheeks glowing.

"What's up Rico," she said awkardly, her voice quavering. Rico only chuckled and then proceeded to the helm. She thought she heard him wolf-whistle as he disappeared behind the door to the operating room. Marlene looked back towards Julien.

"Hope you enjoyed the peaches," she said. Julien looked down at the can that was still sitting on the planks.

"Dey were delicious," returned the lemur, making Marlene chuckle.

"Have a good night," Marlene offered. Julien nodded. She started making her way back towards the hatch to go to the cabins.

"Oh, and Julien," she added as she walked away. Julien turned to look at her. "Thank _you_."

Julien smiled.

* * *

**~Author's Note~** There's my take on how and why Julien came to the zoo in the first place. Hope Julien didn't seem too OOC here; his normal, bossy self had to give way to some emotion at some point for this pairing to work. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, as I think its one of the best so far (that considering I hate writing dialog-filled chapters!)


	37. Reanimation

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 37 – Reanimation**

* * *

**HE FELT A STRANGE TINGLING.**

It was a feeling that came and went, sometimes becoming so intense that he could have sworn his body was engulfed in ants. His flippers and feet went completely numb at when it happened, and even though he couldn't see much anyway, his vision became very blurry. Sometimes he blacked out from the sensation, other times he just sat still and awake. He let the its waves roll through him like the ocean he heard outside.

Whenever the sensation faded, though, it was always replaced with a strange warmness. It was as if some fire had just been burning inside him, and he knew his body temperature was higher than it would be regularly. That sensation faded after some time, too, and some brief pain followed. It was quickly removed by the tingling again. The whole cycle was like some weird battle going on over his senses, as if the tickle, burning, and pain were locked together in a big dispute.

He knew better though. The doctor had made sure that he had at least some defense to his one weakness. Electrical surges were his Achille's heel, whereas his ability to regenerate his circuits was the shoe defending it. The realization had hit him when he awoke from his exhaustive slumber after showing Skipper some of what had happened in the Penguin Army base.

He knew that the tingling sensation was the circuits mending themselves; rearranging, recalibrating, reanimating. The electrical surge he forced upon himself had blown out many components as well. Those were being removed, placed aside, or being reconfigured for new tasks if possible. The rest of the chips and circuits inside of him were being outfitted to take on the tasks of the destroyed parts. Manfredi briefly alluded it to some sort of computer society, where specialized individuals were being retrained to take up the jobs of the deceased.

He knew that the doctor had planned for this ability - the ability to regenerate himself. It wasn't perfect, by far, but it still gave him a second chance. He wasn't sure if he could get a third, though. Even though his parts were being reused, he knew that another shock would probably destroy those as well. Then he'd have nothing left, and surely succumb. He was glad that when Sarge tased him on the dock, he hadn't contacted any of his metal parts. If that was the case, he knew he would be dead by now.

Either way, he was being repaired, and it was only a matter of days now before he would be able to stand again. He hoped he would be back up to speed before they reached Antarctica, as he would need all of his strength. He could already move his flippers more easily and with nearly no pain. His legs were a different story, though, and he still found it impossible to move his beak. His body was restoring itself piece by piece, he thought.

His blurry vision flashed, and he saw Skipper standing over him. The leader penguin looked focused, curious, and a little bit excited. "Can you show me more of what happened in the bunker?" he asked.

Manfredi nodded slowly, a sharp pain shooting through his temples as he did so. Skipper nodded back and propped the heavier penguin up again. Manfredi knew it was time to tell Skipper how he had become this way – part robot. He needed to tell the leader how organic cells had been replaced with microprocessors. He needed to tell him about the doctor.

As he thought about his memories, he let himself fall into the same state of trance that he had been in the previous night. Knowing he was now projecting the images for Skipper, he let his entire body go limp. After that he saw darkness, heard Johnson's high voice, and smelled rotten eggs...

* * *

A strange silence seemed to envelop the bunker-turned-freezer after the force of the blast had rocked it. None of the penguins standing there said a word, only glanced at each other. Manfredi felt stunned, like the force of the blast had knocked the wind out of him. He was amazed, and equally thankful, that the bunker was still standing. Deep cracks now ran up and down the curved walls, large chunks of concrete along with chunks of ice littered the floor, and the metal hatch door they had closed behind them was now bowed deeply inward, like it had been formed that way from the beginning. Manfredi figured the only reason the ceiling hadn't fallen down on top of them was the bunker's dome shape, giving it unreal strength.

It was dim inside of the bunker, but not impossible to see around. There were a few strands of sunlight making their way through cracks in the ceiling, and there were a few emergency lights that were still operational. Manfredi knew that their batteries would run out soon, though, and they'd have no light to work with.

The large penguin heard a soft moan from below him. He had entirely forgotten about Caspian, who was on the ground in front of him, rocking back and forth. He was holding his face, with his flippers, but Manfredi could see that most of his feathers around the right side of his face had been scorched off and his eye was bleeding. He wondered now why he had bothered to drag the bastard into the safety of the bunker. _It was all because of the heat of the moment_, he thought, _I just wanted to get that door closed..._

The black beaked, red eyed penguin was now dragging the wounded penguin across the room to one of the light sources. Then he proceeded to better check his superior's wounds. He then produced some basic medical supplies from a kit that had been knocked off the wall from the force of the blast. Manfredi briefly wished that the first aid kit wasn't there, so that Fishslader would have to suffer just that little bit more. He shook his head as Johnson spoke.

"Wow!" he said, almost excitedly, "This place is as solid as a rock. Great job building it, Manfredi."

Manfredi looked to his smaller friend and nodded, then attempted to twist the hatch door open. He could rotate the handle, but it wouldn't budge. It was either entirely fused shut from the heat of the blast, or it was too dented to open anymore. There was no hope of trying to bash it open, either, as its inward curve would hold up to anything Manfredi could throw at it. Suddenly, he realized there was a scarlet liquid dripping down his flipper as he exerted himself against the door.

"Manfredi, you're hurt!" Johnson said, worriedly. He grabbed the larger penguin's flipper and began poking at the pieces of glass that were embedded there. Manfredi pushed his flippers away.

"I'll be fine," he assured, "it's just a scratch."

"You're bleeding quite profusely actually," returned Johnson, "you should at least try to get the glass out so it doesn't get infected."

Manfredi nodded and walked over to where the other two penguins were to help himself to some of the supplies in the small box. He found a pair of tweezers and a spool of bandages. He tried digging out one of the larger pieces of glass, but it wouldn't budge. He winced from the pain.

"If you'll hold on a moment, I'll give you a hand," said the red-eyed penguin, not looking up from the Sargent. He had already cleaned his face and wrapped the right side of his head in the bandages. There was some blood soaking through, but he looked a lot better than he did only moments ago.

"Uh... thanks," said Manfredi as the penguin began working on getting the glass shards out of his flipper.

"No worries," he returned with a nod, "its the least I could do for you after you helped me rescue this lamebrain over here." He gestured to his superior, who had now fallen unconscious. "I told him not to go down that tunnel, and like usual, he didn't listen to me."

"So you're pretty close to Fishslader, then?" asked Manfredi. "I mean, like you are his adviser or something?"  
"You could say that," the penguin returned, wrapping Manfredi's flipper with the bandages now. He worked fast, and Manfredi had hardly felt him yanking out the glass shards.

Manfredi looked towards the penguin, sleeping with his head on a large chunk of concrete. He had never felt as repulsed by another living thing in his entire life as he did looking at him. He smiled slightly though. Seeing him unconscious, injured, and weak was exactly what he wanted. "Do you think he's going to survive after that blast?" he asked.

"Likely. No major cuts, no head trauma, and no severe burns. He'll probably loose sight in his right eye, but that's a small price to pay in exchange for living."

Manfredi nodded solemnly. He wasn't sure whether that disappointed him or made him glad. While what Caspian had done to him was vile, he wasn't sure if he wanted to wish death on another penguin. It seemed like the wrong thing to do.

"So you're Manfredi, aren't you?" the red-eyed penguin said, finishing up the bandages. He got up and walked over to sit on the concrete block near his superior.

"Yeah. How do you know my name?" Manfredi asked.

"Oh, you were just public enemy number one, as all. At least up until about fifteen minutes ago. And you must be Skipper, then?" he asked Johnson, who had just walked up to the group.

"Oh, no," returned the short penguin, "I'm Johnson."

"Johnson. Weren't you the one who used to work in the kitchen a few months back? You made that delicious herring casserole, right?"

"Yeah, I did," the penguin smiled. "What's your name?"

"I go by a lot of different things around here. My name is Edgar Blackbeak, though most of the others called me Doc. Or smart-ass." His eyes briefly danced between the other two penguins, "So where is your third man? I'm not wrong that his name is Skipper, right?"

"He made it out," answered Manfredi. "He got away with the Sun, I'm hoping."

Edgar nodded slowly, looking towards Caspian. "You know, I told him you guys would break in eventually and steal it back."

Manfredi felt confused at the statement. "Seems like you're treating the fact that we're supposed to be mortal enemies well," he said. It did feel strange, though. In any other situation, they would be at each others necks. His enemy had helped him get the glass out of his flipper and was now holding a friendly conversation with him.

"Bah," huffed Edgar, "now that we're stuck in here, we're back to square one. What happened before has no repercussions. We're going to need to work together to figure a way out of here, anyway."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Edgar," offered Johnson.

"Likewise," Edgar affirmed. "We wouldn't even be stuck in here if Caspian had just given me time to implement the proper safety procedures. I could have devised a system to stop any explosion from happening."

"You're the one behind all the technology in this place then?" asked Manfredi. He knew that the entire penguin base was as high-tech as any human military base might be.

"Exactly. I've got some lackeys who do the installation for me, but most of what you see was designed entirely by me. I even designed and built the reactor that was able to convert the Sun's energy into useable electricity. Like I said, if I had more time, I would have been able to make it a little safer. Then, maybe half of the penguins who died today might still be alive."

Manfredi thought back to the penguin he had tripped over during his scramble to run back into the base. "Maybe if you hadn't have built it in the first place, they would be too," he said a little harshly.

Surprisingly, Edgar chuckled at the statement. "And maybe if you hadn't betrayed us all and stole the Sun away, they would be too. I can play the blame game all day long if you'd like, but we'll still get nowhere. I'm blaming myself for this already, so I suggest you watch your mouth."

Manfredi narrowed his eyes and felt his muscles tighten up a little bit. Sarge was the one who had carried out the plans to kill his family and take the sun, but this was the penguin who had given him the resources to do so. He felt like getting up and walking away from the black beaked penguin when Johnson spoke up.

"So, uh..." he said, awkwardly, "any clue on how to get out of here?"

"I didn't spend much time down in this sector since its so new," responded Edgar, then redirected his attention to the large penguin, "but you might know, seeing as how you built this place."

Manfredi nodded. He knew that the design had called for only one door into the bunker. One way in, one way out. It made filling the place with ice and fish a major pain. He knew of an alternate way, though. Something that he and Skipper had convinced the other penguins to build into the plans right under their superior's noses. It was a tunnel that lead from just outside the base to where they were now. They had built it with hopes of using it to sneak rations out at a later date. He got up from the group and waddled over to a special area of the floor, pushing some fish, ice, and concrete out of the way.

"Right here," he said, "should be a passage that will lead us out of here." The large penguin reached down to the concrete and found a specific nick in it. It wasn't there from the destruction that had just occurred, but rather been put there intentionally. He slipped his flippers underneath the slap of concrete and heaved, prying it open. The concrete was thin, but still weighed a lot. He flipped it off and revealed a small, three foot diameter hole in the ground below him.

"That wasn't part of my specification," Edgar scoffed, but then laughed. Manfredi curled his flippers into balls at the joke, but then relaxed. "I'm glad you put it in, though."

"Uh, Manfredi," came Johnson. "That hole is filled with water."

The larger penguin had noticed this too. A water main must have broken and flooded the tunnel. "We're penguins, we'll swim," he said, simply.

"We could, yes," continued Edgar, "but it is probably pitch black down there, don't you think? It would be far too easy to get turned around and entirely disorientated."

"You're actually right," agreed Manfredi, "and tunnel might actually be caved in. We didn't support it with anything when we dug it."

"This may be our only way out, though," offered Edgar.

"Maybe the water will drain out after a while," said Johnson, "we've got plenty of fish to eat and ice for hydration. We could wait it out."

"That's probably the best bet," affirmed the red-eyed penguin. Manfredi also nodded.

Suddenly a voice came from the other side of the bunker. Sarge was stirring.

"What's... this?" he cried, "I can't see, I'm blind!"

"I'd better go calm him down before he flips out," explained Edgar. "Why don't you guys check around here and see if there's anything useful we can use.

Manfredi nodded, knowing there wasn't much else to be done at the moment.

About an hour later, Manfredi and Johnson and scoured the entire inside of the bunker. It was almost entirely composed of fish, but Manfredi knew of several useful items that had been put into the bunker in case of an emergency like this. They had founded another battered first aid kit, though this one had been soaked entirely through and most of the items were ruined. They also found a toolkit. Inside it were several useful items, including a few basic tools like a hammer and a few screwdrivers. Also inside the kit were a few unused glow sticks and a packet of matches. Manfredi knew they'd come in handy for navigating the tunnel if and when the water subsided. Finally, they found a mangled knife that had been partly crushed by a falling chunk of concrete. The blade was bent crooked, but it was still sharp. Manfredi decided to keep it close to himself, rather then even let Sarge think about getting his hands on it. The penguin was crippled, but Manfredi still didn't trust him. Edgar didn't seem to mind.

Caspian had now returned to full consciousness. He didn't seem to be in too much pain anymore, and was now using two pieces of rebarb and some of the tape to make a splint for his foot. It looked mangled, but Manfredi knew it would heal over time.

Manfredi sat about one hundred feet from where the Sargent leaned up against the wall, working on his wounded foot. He had the knife next to him, but he didn't think about picking it up. Every once in a while his gaze would meet with Caspian, and they would stare each other down for a bit. Neither looked particularly angry or aggressive, but there was definitely hatred between the two penguins. Manfredi wondered why the other penguin didn't just attack him because he knew he wanted to. He thought it must have been his injury combined with the fact that Edgar and Johnson were acting like mediators between the two.

He thought about Skipper and wondered where he was. He wondered if the flat-headed penguin was on his way to Antarctica to return the Sun or trying to find way to rescue them. He didn't know what one he hoped for more. He thought briefly that he might never see his teammate again, and felt sad.

Even though it had only been just over an hour, Manfredi felt like the four had been inside the bunker for several days. He was beginning to feel claustrophobic already. His eyes had adjusted to the darkness, but he still wished that more sunlight would come through the cracks in the ceiling. Nether of those things compared to the smell that was now filling the air around him, though. He had not noticed it at first, but now it was too strong to ignore. His eyes were beginning to water. It was completely unique to him, like nothing he had ever sensed before. His nose burned. He wondered if the fish around him were rotting.

He got up and tried to look for a pocket of fresh air. It was to no avail. He turned his head to look for the source of the smell, but only saw a smashed pipe. It was completely broken apart, emerging from the wall. Nothing seemed to be coming out if though... at least not water. He saw something inscribed on the wall near it and called Johnson over to read it.

"Natural gas feed," read Johnson, "That's what it says. What the heck is natural gas?"

"No clue, but I recognize the name of the stuff from when we built this place. I installed some pipes like this one, but nobody told me what it was for. All I know is that if there's something coming out of that pipe, it is stinking this place up."

Johnson rubbed the water out of his eyes. "Yeah."

"Hey, Edgar," called Manfredi. The red-eyed penguin waddled over to where the other two were standing, and immediately clutched his beak upon growing closer.

"What the hell," he said through his flippers, "did you do."

"We didn't do anything," returned Johnson, coughing. "It seems to be coming from this pipe here that says natural gas feed on it, though."

Edgar's eyes went wide-eyed. "Natural gas?"

"That's what I said."

"Wonderful. Now my idea to steal gas from that nearby human village has backfired too."

"Huh?" asked Manfredi, unable to understand Edgar's muffled words. The penguin gestured away from the source of the smell.

"Good," he said when they got away. "I was beginning to feel light headed. Now, let me explain. Natural gas is a hydrocarbon mixture that, when burned, produces a great amount of heat. We were using that heat to generate electricity for this place until we got the Sun. I never switched off the feed, though, so now its blowing a constant stream of natural gas into this room.

"So? We can deal with a little smell," said Johnson.

"You don't understand," returned Blackbeak, "it's toxic if you breathe in too much of it. That's why it smells so bad, so you know its there. Otherwise its invisible, tasteless, and odorless. It would be an invisible killer if it wasn't for the smell the humans add. This place is going to be our coffin in a few hours if we don't find a way out soon."

"So let's just swim the hell out of here," said Sarge suddenly, "like we were planning to do anyway."

Edgar sighed. "We've already discussed why we can't swim through there... unless..."

"What?" The three penguins said in unison.

"If I remember correctly, the armory borders this facility to the north edge. I stored a set of rebreathers in there. They're incredible little tools that extract oxygen from water, so we'd be able to swim for much longer in the tunnel if we'd need to."

"We need to get in there somehow then," affirmed Manfredi. "we can't risk going into the tunnel without them. I'm not particularly interested in drowning."

"We'll I'm not interested in suffocating either," added Sarge. Manfredi couldn't decide if he'd rather down or suffocate if it came down to it.

Knowing something must be done, the heavy penguin made his way to the north wall of the domed structure. He knocked sum rubble out of the way, and with a heave, rolled a large slap of concrete out of the way to reveal a small hole in the base of the wall where it had split. It was quite small but Manfredi could see the ruined armory on the other side of it.

He pushed forward, trying to squeeze through the crack. He sucked in his chest and pulled his flippers in tight, but he was still several inches too wide. Becoming frustrated, he reached into the room on the other side of the foot-thick concrete. He tried to grab anything, but could only feel rubble.

"Johnson!" he called. The small penguin made his way over. Clutched in his flipper was his journal.

"What is it?"

"You're up!"

* * *

Manfredi's vision flickered and faded again much like it had the previous night. He slowly returned to reality once again, the feeling returning to his flippers and legs. He was glad his nostrils were now filled with salty sea air once again rather than the smell of the natural gas.

Skipper was standing over him, saying something to him. He wished it wasn't so taxing to project his memories for Skipper to see. He had wanted to show Skipper everything. Knowing he was already slipping from consciousness, though, Skipper would have to wait.

As he slipped into his dreams the only thing he could think of was Sarge laying on the cold concrete in the dark. His foot broken, his eye bleeding. He wanted to see him like that again. He wanted to see Sarge weak, broken, and dieing just like he was. If it did happen again, though, and he gazed over the nearly-dead Sarge, he would be sure to not waste the chance to end him once and for all.

Skipper placed his flippers on Manfredi's shoulders and gave him a gentle shake as if to keep him awake, but it only accelerated the robot-penguins exhaustion and he lost consciousness entirely. Knowing it was not worth it to fight sleep any longer, he fell into it.


	38. Pursuit

Skipper's Log. 06:00 Hours on September the 15th.

_"We arrived at Antarctica only a few minutes ago. Manfredi has really beginning to show signs of desperation about the amount of time it took us to get here. The research vessel we boarded took a day or so to study some penguins off of an African Coast, so there is no chance we got here before Flishslader and the Penguin Army. Manfredi realizes that and he's urging us to move out to get to the penguin city as fast as we possibly can. I know he hasn't slept in several days, but he doesn't seem the least bit tired. _

_ "I had to ask him for a few moments to gather our things so that I could break away to record this. I can understand that he's worried for his hometown and his family, but we can't just go charging in there headfirst. We could get slaughtered. Besides, why would Sargent Caspian even bother messing with the small, defenseless village. According to Manfredi, they've got nothing to fight back, with so why bother with them? He wouldn't just massacre them, would he?_

_ "What we need to do is collect our munitions and supplies, and take as much as we can carry from this boat. We've got a lot of fighting ahead of us if we want to stop Sarge from getting a hold of the Sun, so we're going to need them._

_ "As for Antarctica, it's what I expected. A barren wasteland of endless white and bitter cold. I don't understand how any penguins could live here, or for that matter, build a city. It doesn't seem practical – where would they even get food? The water here is iced over with a sheet thick enough for the humans to drive their vehicles on. How in the world are these penguins feeding themselves?_

_ "Manfredi came from here though, so I'm certain that there is some way they get by. According to what I've heard, for a few months each year, this place is pitch black. The sun doesn't even break the horizon. Why would any penguin want to live in constant darkness?_

_ "For Manfredi's sake, though, I hope the settlement is undisturbed. His sanity seems to be fading every so slightly with each passing moment, and the sight of his hometown destroyed could push him over the edge. All three of us need to be at our strongest now, though, that's for damn sure. _

_ "We can't, and won't, let Sarge get his grubby flippers on the Sun."_

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 38 – Pursuit**

**" I BE SEEIN' T' SHIP NOW."**

"Thanks, Issac," responded Alice.

"You want I should be followin' more close like?" asked the man.

"No, no," answered the redhead. "We need to keep our distance a bit, or else they'll get suspicious. Just keep them in your sights and we should be fine."

"Ay, lass. What be we huntin' this craft for anyhow?"

"Something important to me is on it. Actually, make that several important somethings."

"Be it treasure? Money, jewels? Or did they be capturin' your first-born?"

"Not quite. Back in New York I run the Central Park Zoo. My penguins escaped, stole that boat, and are on their way to somewhere. I have no idea what they have planned but I'd like to find out."

The man looked confused at her, and then said, "And they be tellin' me _I'm_ crazy."

"Forget I said anything," Alice said, waving her hand dismissively. She pulled up her jacket collor and walked away from the man who shrugged and returned his attention to the ship's wheel.

Issac Hull was the only captain they could find who would take them on this penguin chase, if you could even call him a captain. More or less, Alice knew he was just a man who owned a boat in good enough shape to get them across the globe. Despite the fact that he had already been jailed twice for drunken brawls, he was also the only person who was willing to do it on such short notice and for less then a million dollars.

The man stood crooked in his boots that squeaked when he walked. His hair was matted and patchy, and his teeth were few and far between. His left eye twitched when he spoke, making it hard to focus on what he was saying. He spoke with a typical New York accent that had a hint of something stereotypically like a Pirate. He wore a flannel shirt and torn blue jeans and genuinely reeked of dead fish. Alice was happy to get away from him.

His boat was nothing special, but it was sturdy. From what Alice could see of the penguin's boat, it was also in far better condition. Briefly she wished that Andrew had invested a little bit more money and left them a better ship to use. She could see their ship on the horizon, just a tiny speck against the endless blue sky. She looked through her binoculars and thought she could see the penguins practicing on the deck, but she couldn't tell.

As she came into the storage hull that Issac had set up for Alice, Mr. Green, and his colleagues to stay in, she grabbed one of the penguin monitors. Though no surprise to her, her aforementioned suspicions were confirmed. On the monitor was her otter, looking fairly scared. The penguin slowly approached the otter and Alice watched as its flippers flicked in and out of the frame, blows directed towards the mammal. Surprisingly, though, the otter was blocking the swings fairly easily and with a grunt, pushed the penguin away from herself. The penguin toppled to the ground, growling. The otter offered a paw to help her fallen friend up. The otter purred something and the penguin responded with a few clicks. Before Alice had time to figure out what they were saying though, they were back at it again.

From the footage they had received since their departure, she had discovered that her otter and her ring-tail lemur were both aboard the penguin's vessel as well. It didn't make her particularly happy, but after realizing what had happened on the dock and how they had helped she realized that it was a good thing that they were tagging along. Besides, they didn't seem particularly upset about being there and were being taught some animal hand-to-hand combat from the penguins.

Nothing else particularly interesting had happened. She knew that one of the penguins on the boat was always driving, and the other two were preparing for their upcoming struggle. Because she had smashed the leader's video feed she was unaware of what he had been up to for the most part, but through process of elimination she knew he had been driving nearly all of the time.

"Have we finally caught sight of the penguin's ship?" asked Mr. Green upon noticing that Alice had entered. He was hunched over another of the penguin monitors with a few of his interns that had agreed to come along for the trip.

"Yeah," Alice responded, "Issac's tailing them from about thirty miles or so. We can see them, but we can't see what their chasing, if its even anything. Didn't want to risk getting closer or they might get suspicious."

Andrew nodded. In any other event, someone would have asked how a penguin would become suspicious of anything. However, he and his interns had already seen plenty of the penguin's vision to become familiar with how intelligent these particular penguins were.

"Andrew walked away from the monitor and picked up a map. "We've already gone very far south," he pointed to a spot in the Atlantic ocean just south and east of Argentina. "It's pretty clear at this point that the penguins are going directly to Antarctica."

"Antarctica!" exclaimed Alice. "What makes you think that?"

"It's the only logical place, based on their trajectory. It must make some sort of sense to you, though. Antarctica has the biggest population of penguins on the globe."

"Hmm," wondered the burly woman, "what in the world could be there, though? I mean, it's just a barren wasteland, right?"

"Your guess is as good as mine. If they are following those penguins we encountered on the dock, which is likely as one of your penguins is still on the said penguin's craft, there is something worthwhile there. I have no clue what it might be."

"Yeah," answered Alice. She knew that there was something bigger going on than just a rescue mission, and she was determined to find out what it was. Her lemur and otter would not have gotten this involved if the penguins were just going after their exhibit-mate. Those evil penguins would not have attacked her that night in the zoo nearly three weeks back if all they wanted was to steal away one of her penguins. She knew it in her gut that they had something much worse planned then just that.

"Hey, Andy," she said, trying to get her mind off the enemy penguins.

"Mr. Green, _please_," urged Andrew, straightening his tie. The stout man's suit was crusted with salt now but he still wore it like he was expecting a business meeting sometime soon.

"Whatever. Anyway, don't you think that you could have left those penguins a little bit better boat to drive? From what I could see it looked like it was falling apart," she contemplated.

"Well it wasn't easy to find anything with only twelve hours notice," explained Mr. Green, pushing his glasses up his nose. "There is far too much paperwork involved in one of these purchases. I had to find someone who just wanted cash as fast as possible. You know for a fact that there were no boats at the dock for them to commandeer that night, anyway. They'd be stranded if I hadn't have left it for them."

"That's true," said Alice, sitting down on a crate and leaning back against the wall behind her.

"I did everything else you requested, as well, don't forget. The boat had a full tank of fuel with some extra canisters ready for them to use if they needed them. I also had some fresh water planted on the boat with some food for them as well. I even put the key to the thing right in the helm."

"Okay, okay," said Alice, crossing her arms, "Sorry to have questioned your judgment. It just seems like that hunk of junk could fall apart at any moment. And you know that robot-penguin friend of theirs almost killed himself to start it because they didn't find the key."

Mr. Green raised his brow suspiciously, folding his hands behind his back. "If I didn't know better, Alice, I'd say you're growing a real soft spot for your penguins."

"What? Why?"

"It seems you are hoping for them to be able to ride in total comfort?" The stout man smiled as he spoke. "I'm just as curious about finding out what they're up to and the fullest extent of their abilities, but you seem to be more concerned about their well-being."

Alice sighed. "Of course. I paid a lot of money for them and I'd be pretty upset if they just up and died because of this whole mess."

Andrew shook his head. "If you were just concerned about how much you paid for them, you'd be happy with them being flown to their destination in the storage hold of a cargo plane, so long as they arrived in one piece. I think that you're beginning to _love_ them."

Alice lowered her brow angrily and gritted her teeth. She knew that this whole situation wasn't important, but Andrew was taunting her with it. She knew that he was passive aggressive and liked to get under her skin anyway he could, as long as it wasn't direct confrontation. She was different though. She'd stand right up in his face if she needed to, and that's exactly what she did.

"Lay off," she exclaimed, jabbing his chest with a long finger. "Before all this BS started happening, I thought Animals were just dumb animals. You know just as well as I do that these penguins aren't the least bit stupid. They might very well be more intelligent than you."

Mr. Green frowned profusely, then said, "I seriously doubt a pack of flightless birds can do improper numerical integration and still run an entire corporation."

"Pfft," hushed Alice. "Math isn't going to help you in a real fight. Speaking of which, I bet my penguins could kick your ass if they wanted to."

Andrew pushed his glasses up his nose and took a step back from the fuming redhead. "I'm not exactly sure if they could or not. Actually, you seem to be familiar with _getting your ass kicked_ by penguins, so maybe you could tell me?"

Before Alice could lash at the business man for insulting her, one of the interns suddenly spoke loudly. "You guys might want to stop fighting and come take a look at this," he said simply, holding out one of the monitors to Mr. Green. Alice forgot how angry he was with him momentarily and walked behind him, looking over his shoulder to see what was on the screen.

It was the fourth and missing penguin who was assumed to be still trapped on the enemy penguins' boat. Mr. Green had determined that it was the intellectual, second-in-command penguin they had observed previously. He had been bound and blindfolded for most of the last week, the only input coming through was brief sounds of eating, penguin chatter, or waves sloshing. Now he was free and the blindfold had been removed.

He was standing on the deck of the maniacal penguins' raft looking down at the three of them. Alice immediately recognized them as the penguins who had attacked her, and she felt slightly angry at the birds. They were only birds, but her leg still hurt occasionally from where they had shot her.

Surprisingly enough, though, there was no fighting occurring. She had assumed that her penguin would have immediately attacked the three penguins upon being freed, or at least tried to find away off of the boat. However, they were just standing around, chattering out some sort of a conversation. From what Alice could tell about the penguin's body language, not a single one of them looked the least bit hostel. It almost seemed like a little bit of a friendly conversation.

The blind-eyed penguin in the middle of the monitor smiled, and then let out an odd penguin laugh. The large penguin to his side followed before shutting up as the blind-eyed penguin slapped the back of his head. The rock-hopper did not react to the action, but still looked like he had a slight smile on his face.

Her penguin cooed something to the other penguins, and the blind-eyed penguin nodded happily. The next thing was that her penguin was shaking flippers with all three of the enemy penguins. The sight of it blew her away – didn't they just have a nearly mortal fight on the deck only a week and a half ago? She couldn't believe that they had just made some sort of truce or pact, it just couldn't be true. Maybe her penguin was planning something deceitful? She couldn't help but feel like he was betraying her other penguins though, his teammates. Surprising to her, her gut twisted into a knot. She didn't know if it was from anger or because she was worried, though.

"That is very peculiar," said Mr. Green, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "It looks like he's now going to go to the helm of the ship to steer it... but why?"

"Beats me," answered Alice, "But I hope he's not leaving the other penguins behind and teaming up with these bozos."

"Agreed. The last thing your penguins need is one of their own backstabbing them like this." Mr. Green said as he handed the monitor back to the intern.

"Is that why he had stayed on the boat in the first place?" wondered Alice, "My monkey is no longer there, so he either was able to escape or got rescued by... something. Did he want to stick around so that he could join up?"

"It's very possible. We can't understand what they said though, so its really not clear as to what sort of an agreement they hashed out. For all we know, he could have agreed to navigate them to Antarctica in exchange for his freedom."

Alice nodded then said thoughtfully, "That still wouldn't explain that blind penguin's happy laugh."

* * *

**~Author's Note:** Hope you enjoyed that chapter, it was a tough one to punch out. I really dislike chapters where no real action happens, but at least one major plot point did occur here. Did you manage to catch it? Anyway, lots of little things to be said.

First off: I spent a few hours creating a concept book cover for this story. It's posted on DeviantArt if you want to take a look at it. Just search up "cudabear" on there and it should pop up. With that in mind, also take a look at Digimontamers2000 on DeviantArt, as she was nice enough to draw pictures of both Johnson and Manfredi!

Second off: While rereading chapter 20 I realized I mentioned Dr. Blowhole being the leader of the Penguin Army. It was something I changed shortly thereafter, after I saw the first Dr. Blowhole special. Sorry for any confusion that resulted from that change. Sarge is the leader of the Penguin Army. Dr. Blowhole does not appear in this story.

Third off: While on the topic of canon characters I didn't use, I regret starting this fanfiction before many of the newer penguins episodes came out. Characters like Buck Rockgut, Kitka, Officer X, The Red Squirrel, and Uncle Nigel would have really fit well into certain areas. In defense of myself however, I did not know these characters existed until only a few days ago!

This note is too long now, so I will end it now. Please review if you are enjoying the story, and return soon for the last installment of Manfredi's flashback.


	39. Animosity

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 39 – Animosity**

* * *

**HIS VISION HAD FINALLY BEEN RESTORED.**

It was as if all of the robotic penguin's problems had just been whisked away by the previous night's sleep. Most notable was the fact that he could now see normally again, his sense of vision returning to his normal eye. The red flashing stopped and he could again see in full color and full animation.

The penguin was now breathing again, as well. His first few breaths had been shaky, and the cool air burned his throat. After only a few mouthfuls he was readjusted to the use of his own lungs, though, and knew he would no longer have to rely on his embedded oxygen supply. It would now begin replenishing itself so that he could use it at another point in time if he deemed it necessary.

Movement had also come slowly. He was surprised at how weak he was, and upon attempting to stand, found he was unable to support his own weight. He figured it was more because he had been laying still for the last nearly two weeks than his body was still repairing himself. He knew he'd have to do some exercising to get his strength back up to where it was before. Regardless, he was happy to have feeling back in his flippers and legs. He flexed his webbed toes, ran his flippers over themselves. He had almost forgotten what it was like to feel his own flesh and feathers.

The other penguins, Skipper's teammates, reacted interestingly at the fact that he was now active again. Rico did not seem particularly excited about the robotic penguin stirring during his driving shift, but was impressed to see him moving around. Rico had helped him try to stand, and caught him when he fell. He was happy that Rico was so comfortable around him, even though he knew his appearance could be terrifying. Rico seemed to already have formed some sort of bond with him, but he didn't know why. Maybe it was because this whole situation demanded it, or maybe it was because he supported anyone Skipper supported.

Private, on the other hand, didn't seem as happy. In fact, Manfredi sensed a distinct feeling of fear from the smaller penguin when he had stood for the first time in weeks. He knew that he intimidated the smaller penguin, but had no idea to what extent. Whereas Rico was supporting half of his weight trying to get him to stand, Private seemed to be taking small steps back. Manfredi wondered what the smaller penguin thought of him. Did he think he was some sort of monster, raised from the dead?

The specialist had left the helm shortly after Manfredi had collapsed again, not saying a word. He returned with Skipper a few moments later, who was now standing with the other two penguins. Rico had gently propped him up against the wall, similar to the position that he had been sitting in the previous two nights. This time however, Manfredi was fully conscious and couldn't stop running his organic flipper over the metal one, feeling the hard, cold plates. He continued this for a few moments before anyone spoke.

"How are you feeling?" asked Skipper, flippers crossed. Manfredi looked up from his own flippers and saw the leader penguin with his brow arched.

"Weak," Manfredi responded, "but I am ready to confront my target regardless."

"That's good. I don't think we can do this without you."

Manfredi cocked his head a bit, thoughtfully, "That is untrue. If I were to have fallen, you would have carried on."

"Maybe so. Whether we would have been successful or not is a different story entirely," returned the flat-headed penguin.

The boat rocked back and forth gently in the waves. Manfredi rested his head back against the wall behind him and closed his eyes, inhaling the salty sea air, taking in the peaceful moment. He knew what was coming. He knew that it was time to show Skipper what had happened to Johnson. It was one of his deepest, darkest memories. It was one that tore at his conscious and made him wonder every moment how he could have performed differently to save Johnson's life. Johnson was the last thing he had before he was turned into this heartless bundle of feathers and steel, and he was about to relive the exact moment when that happen. He felt his flippers tense up and returned his attention to the three penguins across the room.

"Are you ready?" he said, simply. Skipper nodded.

He returned the nod, and then remembered Johnson, the bunker, Edgar, and Caspian. As he did so, he felt his vision fade and his body go limp. _One last time_, he thought.

"Where are you going, Private?" Skipper said, sounding like he was miles away.

"Just going out to see what Marlene's up to, Skippah."

"Forget Marlene for now. You need to see this. Then everything will make a whole lot more sense..."

The leader's commanding voice trailed off as Manfredi felt himself get pulled away from reality once more; one last time. The cool air on his flippers began to feel as cold as ice. The salty sea air around him started to turn putrid. Private's soft voice turned into Johnson's terrified screams...

* * *

"Alright. You're looking for a small, circular device that has a beak-shaped elastic cover with it. You can't miss it when you find it. It's something that you could fit right over your own bill," explained Edgar. Johnson nodded with understanding. He was holding one of the glow sticks, now active and emitting light, rather than his journal. Manfredi held it tightly for him as Johnson prepared to venture into the ruined armory.

"While you're in there," said Manfredi, "check for any other supplies that could be useful. Also see if there is any way you can get out through there. Maybe we can avoid swimming through the water entirely."

"Gotcha," returned the smaller penguin. He looked determined and not the least bit scared. Manfredi thought about when he had first met Johnson. The young penguin would have not been able to investigate a ruined, pitch black armory alone. Manfredi knew that the younger penguin had grown up a lot since they had first met.

"Good luck," said Manfredi as the small penguin squeezed himself into the crack in the wall, "and hurry back!"

The green light of Johnson's glow stick faded away and left the other three penguins sitting alone in the dimly lit bunker turned freezer turned bunker. The smell of the natural gas was becoming prevalent throughout the space now, even this far away from the broken pipe. Manfredi wondered briefly how much time they had before they would suffocate from lack of oxygen. He figured it must have been at least a few hours.

"Don't you think if he finds a way out through there, he's going to just escape and forget about us?" said Caspian suddenly. Manfredi directed his attention toward the flat-headed penguin to see him with his brow arched and his flippers crossed. The larger penguin couldn't help but allude the look to Skipper.

"Johnson?" he returned. "No way. He'd never even consider leaving us in here alone."

"I'm not so sure. I say if he finds his own way out, he's going to leave us to die," retorted Fishslader, making Manfredi scowl.

"Johnson is a better teammate than you've ever known," he barked, jabbing his flipper into the ex-Sargent's chest. "He's going to find those rebreathers and come straight back here."

Sarge chuckled, but then returned to his previous look. "Don't you understand? When there's a risk of dieing, penguins don't stick together. They fight only as far as it takes to save their own feathers. He's probably already forgotten about us."

Manfredi raised his flipper to strike Fishslader, but Edgar held him back. "Shut up, Caspian" he said, "You know damn well that we were the ones who saved you from being vaporized only a few hours ago."

The flat-headed penguin ran a flipper over his bandages. "For obvious reason," he smirked.

"For what?" asked Edgar. He was still holding Manfredi back, but the penguin was not struggling against the black-beaked penguin's grip. However, his face was still twisted into a scowl.

"Without me you boys would be nowhere. You'd have no leader, and therefore would be lost like a bunch of pigeons in the dark."

Sarge flinched as he was tackled to the ground in a flurry of feathers, but surprisingly, Manfredi still stood. He couldn't help but smile at Edgar, who was now on top of the smaller penguin, holding his flippers to the concrete.

"That's it, you son of a bitch," growled the red-eyed penguin. "Now I regret ever joining onto your stupid scheme. I regret ever _saving your life!_

"Is that how you talk to your superior?" spat Caspian, his face twisted with anger.

"You are _not_ my superior. You _never were_."

As he spoke, Edgar slammed Caspian's flippers into the concrete, making him flinch. Manfredi felt it was time to intervene and pulled the enraged penguin off of Sarge. His beak was clenched and he was still shaking angrily, but he did not resist Manfredi. Fishslader picked himself up from the concrete and dusted off his feathers.

"See what I mean, Manfredi," said Sarge, rubbing his flippers together where Edgar had wrenched them, "Edgar forgot about me just that easily. He doesn't care about his _teammate_ anymore. He only cares about his own feathers."

"No," disagreed the large penguin. "You are just egging him on!"

"You should be thanking me for all I've done for you," seethed Edgar, "not talking down to me like I'm your worthless foot soldier!"

"What's going on out here?" came Johnson's voice suddenly, making all of the commotion between the other three penguins stop. In his flippers he held four penguin-beak-shaped contraptions.

"None of your worry," said Sarge, who snatched one of the rebreathers out of his flippers.

"You made it!" exclaimed Manfredi excitedly. "This inconsiderate bastard says you wouldn't return. You'd leave without us if you found an exit," he continued, pointing towards Caspain.

"I wasn't even thinking about leaving," explained Johnson. "Besides, there's so much debris in there I doubt there is any way out. I didn't even see any daylight coming in from anywhere."

"Regardless of my comrade's actions accusations, then, it seems like going through the flooded tunnel is still our only hope," responded Edgar who had finally calmed down a bit.

"So how do these things work?" asked Manfredi who had traded Johnson his journal back in exchange for one of the devices. "Do we just slip it over our beaks?"

"Exactly. Make sure that the circular vent is near the front, and the seal around the base of your beak is tight. That way, no water will get into your nose or mouth," explained the black-beaked penguin, also taking his own rebreather.

Suddenly Sarge began choking and spluttering, ripping the device off of his face. He gasped for air a few times and then threw the rebreather to the ground, looking angry.

"You told me this thing would help me breathe, not kill me!" he shouted towards Edgar, who merely scowled.

"What's wrong with it?"

"I don't know. I couldn't breathe at all with it on."

Edgar waddled over and picked the rebreather off the ground, examining it closely. "It's been completely smashed," he concluded, tapping on the circular filter. "That, or it was exposed to too much heat during the explosion and fused shut."

Meanwhile, Manfredi had been fastening his own device to his beak, trying his best to ensure the seal was tight. When he was sure no external air could slip in he attempted to inhale, but to his horror, no fresh air met his nostrils. He ripped the cover off his beak and gasped for air much in the same way that Sarge did.

"Mine is fried too," he announced, solemnly.

"And I'm afraid this third one is as well," continued Edgar, toying with the filter on his own mask. Three down, one left.

"This one works," said Johnson, who had already placed his mask over his nostrils and mouth. It muffled his voice but he was still audible. He broke the seal and pealed it off. "At least I think it works."

"Let me see that," said Edgar, taking the mask away from Johnson. He prodded at the filter a few times before handing it back. "It's also been damaged, but at least this one is still usable."

"Were there any more rebreathers in there?" asked Manfredi to Johnson.

"I'm afraid not," answered the smaller penguin, holding his mask, the glow stick, and his journal under one flipper.

"Well, it looks like only one of us is getting out of here then," said Sarge. His flippers were crossed and he was staring directly at Johnson, his brow lowered. Johnson looked awkwardly around for a moment before speaking.

"One of us could probably get out, if its even possible, and try to find a way to get the others out."

Manfredi gestured towards the port door that had been bent during the explosion and said, "That door isn't very strong from the outside. I bet if one of us got out, it wouldn't be too hard to bash in. It might even just twist open from that side."

"It's a long shot," responded the red-eyed penguin, rubbing his beak thoughtfully, "but it might be our only hope. However, there's also a chance that there are no obstructions in the tunnel and the other three of us could just swim out that way as well. The penguin who went could sort of scout ahead."

"Valid point," said Manfredi.

"But who should go?"

Johnson held the rebreather up to Edgar and told him, "you should go. You'd know what to do when you got out of here best."

Surprisingly, Edgar pushed the rebreather away from himself. "This is a tricky situation. That rebreather is damaged already, and there is no telling how long it will function. We need to increase our chances that the penguin who goes will escape as much as possible, or we'll loose all hope of escaping entirely. Therefore, I believe that Manfredi would agree that we are far too large to attempt to swim through the tunnel, in case it has caved in."

"Johnson was always the fastest swimmer on my team," agreed Manfredi, nodding his head towards Edgar. He knew that Johnson wouldn't let them down.

"Me?" said the smaller bird, surprised. "You really want me to try?"

"You've proven yourself to me by finding these in the first place," answered Edgar. "and It seems like we all agree. Right, Caspian?"

Edgar turned towards the direction of the ex-Sargent, but he was no longer standing with the group. Manfredi saw him cranking on the door, trying to see if it would open. It was to no avail, though, and he stumbled away from it, holding his beak from the smell. Manfredi knew he didn't trust Johnson in the slightest, or the others for that matter. The large penguin didn't care, though, and knew Johnson wouldn't give up until the job was completed. That was how Johnson was.

"His opinion doesn't hold much weight anyway," said Edgar, waving his flipper in the direction of the lone penguin.

"Are you ready to go, Johnson?" asked Manfredi, clapping the younger penguin on the back. He looked worriedly at the hole in the ground.

"Better to go now while we still have some oxygen left," affirmed Edgar, giving the smaller bird an encouraging shake.

"Yeah. Yeah, let's do this," said Johnson, clutching his flippers into fists. He handed his journal back to Manfredi and then began putting the rebreather back over his beak.

"Good luck, buddy," encouraged Manfredi. He could see in Johnson's eyes the slightest hint of fear, but knew the penguin was determined. "We're counting on you."

Johnson nodded, and when the mask was tight on his beak, jumped into the water with a plunk. Manfredi watched the glow from his glow stick disappear slowly in much the same way it had into the armory.

"We shouldn't relax while he's working," said Edgar suddenly. "We might be able to increase the time we've got in here if we can stop that flow of natural gas.

"How do suggest doing that?" asked Manfredi, looking in the direction of the smashed pipe.

"Well, normally I'd try to close the pipe up by bending it and weld it shut, but even if we had welding equipment, trying that would result in a massive explosion."

"Wait, what?" interrupted Manfredi, looking startled. "You never said anything about an explosion."

"Of course. Natural gas is highly flammable and this entire place will be up in flames if even the smallest amount of fire is introduced into this environment."

"You have got to be kidding me," said Manfredi, slapping his head. "So can't we just bash it shut, then?"  
"Not a good idea. That might cause sparks, and though its unlikely, those could also ignite the gas."

"So what do you suggest?"

Edgar picked up a roll of medical tape from the first-aid kit and stretched out a length of it. "There's not a whole lot here, and it won't be completely air tight, but it's all we've got," he explained.

Manfredi picked up the other roll and the two proceeded to the pipe. The closer they got, the stronger the smell became. Manfredi covered his nostrils with his flippers, but his eyes still burned. He tried his best to ignore it as they began taping up the pipe. He and Edgar were too busy working on the pipe to notice the sound of water splashing behind them.

Without warning, a high pitched scream cut through the thick air of the bunker. Manfredi immediately spun around from the pipe and saw Johnson and Caspian standing near the opening to the water-filled hole. Manfredi watched as Caspian stepped back from Johnson, pulling a blood soaked dagger out of his chest. Manfredi recognized it instantly as the bent knife that he had found earlier.

Johnson fell to his knees, mouthed something to Sarge, and then fell forward onto his stomach. Manfredi's muscles tensed as he watched Sarge drive the dagger down into the feathered figure again. He wanted to run with all of might, but he was frozen to the ground with shock. Edgar was not under the same effect, however, and bolted out to the middle of the bunker. Manfredi found control of his legs again and followed after the red-eyed penguin just in time to see Sarge drive the knife down one more time.

Manfredi watched the blood drip off the tip of the dagger as Sarge dropped it. It bounced off of Johnson's quivering form before resting on the ground near him. Fishslader looked up at the two charging penguins, smiling manically. Manfredi's eyes were already beginning to tear up, but he was determined to drive his fist directly through that penguin's skull.

Unfortunately, Sarge grabbed the rebreather from Johnson's limp flipper and slid it over his beak. He then grabbed the glowstick and, emitting a muffled laugh, jumped into the water before either penguin could reach him.

"Caspian, you traitorous coward!" cried Edgar, hopping into the water after him. Manfredi didn't care, though, and ran up to Johnson.

He fell to his knees upon approaching the penguin, dropping the journal he didn't realize he was still holding. He rolled the small penguin over and scooped him up into his flippers. Johnson's eyes were wide with shock, his breaths were coming choppily, and his body was convulsing. His blood was already beginning to soak his feathers a dark red. Manfredi pressed the younger penguin into his chest, rubbing some of the scarlet liquid onto his own plumage He didn't care, though. The blood wasn't real. Johnson wasn't stabbed. He wasn't.

"Man... Manfredi," stuttered Johnson, "I... I f-failed.."

The large penguin could see the small penguin's eyes welling up with tears, though he knew it wasn't from pain. He couldn't stop his own tear ducts and salty water began to slide down the sides of his face.

"No you didn't," offered Manfredi, unsure of what else to say.

"I c-came back... b-because I was t-too scared to keep g-going," choked the dieing penguin, "I... I d-didn't think I cou... could make it... I f-failed..."

"Stop saying that!" cried the larger bird, his voice quivering. "You didn't fail!"

"C-casp... pian was w-waiting for me w-when I... s-surfaced," continued the penguin, his breaths coming rough and choppily. "I d-didn't... g-give him... the rebre-breather."

Manfredi felt his flippers get warm and slippery, knowing Johnson's blood was soaking into his feathers. He still didn't care. Johnson was going to be just fine. The young penguin was all Manfredi had left. He wouldn't die. He just wouldn't.

"Caspian is gone now," said Manfredi weakly. "Don't worry about it. We'll get you patched up, and everything is going to be fine."

There was a splash behind Manfredi and shortly after a dripping wet Edgar knelt next to him, eyeing the bird's wounds with fear in his eyes.

"Caspian got away from me," he informed Manfredi regretfully before rushing over to grab what was left of the bandages and medical tape.

"M-Manfredi," coughed the small bird, "y-you're going to die, too."

"What?" returned the larger bird, confused. "Nobody is dieing today."

"T-there's a... a bomb... be-behind that rock," wheezed the penguin. He lifted his shaky flipper towards a pile of broken concrete not far from Manfredi.

"A bomb? There are no bombs here!"

"L-listen to me!" cried Johnson suddenly, grabbing Manfredi's by the feathers and pulling his face closer. "S-Sarge s-showed me... me the bomb... find cover..."

Manfredi felt the small penguin's grip weaken on his scruff and watched his flippers fall limp. The penguin's eyes were no longer filled with shock, but were now empty. Some blood trickled out of the side of his beak, and the only sound he emitted was a low gargling noise. Manfredi couldn't tear his eyes away from the small penguin.

Sarge had done it. He had taken the last thing that Manfredi had ever held close. Destroyed it without regret. Manfredi set the penguin down gently, resting his head on the cold concrete. He stood up as Edgar arrived with the few medical supplies that were left. The tall penguin said something to him, but he didn't hear it. His muscles were tightened, and his face was locked on the pool of water. His beak was clenched tightly shut, and his tear-filled eyes were gleaming in the dim light.

Manfredi wanted to go back in time. He wanted to shove that backstabbing villain out of the bunker and let him get vaporized in the explosion. He wanted to open the door afterwords and stomp on his ashes. He had nothing left, and he wanted nothing more to end that godforsaken bird's life.

Manfredi took a few steps away from his deceased teammate, rubbing the tears out of his eyes with a blood-coated flipper. Johnson's blood dripped from the white feathers on his chest, but again, he didn't notice it. He just couldn't bare to look at his brother's dead body any longer. He waddled over to the pile of rubble that Johnson was talking about and looked behind it.

The penguin found a strange looking stone and lifted it, wanting to whip it at the wall, hoping it would take away some of his grief. He found it peculiar that this rock was entirely round, smooth, and icy cold to the touch. Upon closer examination, he realized Johnson was right.

In his flipper he held a grenade, and the ignition pin was missing.

He whipped the death ball as far away from himself as possible, remembering what the scientist had said about the natural gas in the room. "Edgar!" he cried, now running at the black-beaked penguin, "Get back in the water. Now!"

"Why? I can save him, I just need time!" shouted Edgar, desperately attempting to mop up Johnson's blood with the bandages. It was no use, though. Manfredi knew the penguin was already departed.

"Move!" Manfredi screamed as he flung himself at the red-eyed penguin, knocking him off balance and he stumbled into the water with a plunk. Manfredi then launched himself forward, landing on top of Johnson's unmoving form, shielding his face from the blast he knew was about to come.

The flash and the heat came before the ear-shattering sound. He covered his eyes from the blinding light, but was still blinded. The fire spread through the room almost as quickly as the light, engulfing everything in it's path, including Manfredi. He felt his feathers get singed off. The shock wave rocked his form next, sending tremors through the ground that traveled through him. His ears were already ringing from the excruciating pain before the sound of the explosion even reached him. He attempted to lift his right flipper, and then noticed it was now completely missing.

He hardly had time to experience the pain he was feeling. The explosion left as soon as it had arrived, and Manfredi felt himself leaving consciousness immediately. The last thing he saw was Edgar pulling himself out of the water before he completely blacked out from shock.

* * *

As if it was only a few moments later, his eyes snapped open. He was looking up at a bright light, laying on a hard table. He slowly regained feeling of all of his limbs. He had no idea where he was or what had happened. He felt disorientated and dizzy. The light began spinning around, making him feel nauseous. He curled up into a ball on the table, clutching his stomach, wanting it to stop. He rolled off the table and felt sharp pains as he contacted the concrete below him. Pain. Suddenly, everything came flooding back to him.

"Johnson!" he cried weakly, then coughed as his throat was scratchy. He tried to get a hold of his bearings, but found himself unable to get the room to stop spinning. "Johnson, where are you?" he cried again.

"Johnson didn't make it," came a calm voice from above him. "Sorry to say." Manfredi opened his eyes to see a friendly face. His feathers were matted and ruined and he looked like he was coated in an inch thick layer of dirt, but it was definitely Edgar. "You're lucky enough as it is."

The penguin closed his eyes again as Edgar's face began spinning. He tried to lift his flippers to rub his eyes, but only felt as though he was able to move his left flipper. He suddenly remembered the image of his right flipper completely severed, and felt an immense pain shoot through it.

"Try not to move to much," offered Edgar, "you've been out for about two weeks now. You're going to be weak. And technically, this the first test run of your new components"

New components? What was he talking about? Manfredi rolled himself over and attempted to push himself up onto his flippers. He grunted with the exertion, but was glad there was minimal pain involved. He stopped immediately upon noticing that his right flipper, which he presumed had been blown off, was now metallic.

He fell to the ground again, using his good flipper to inspect the new, metal flipper. He ran the tip of the organic flipper up the cold metal, following it all the way to his body. The metal plating continued over his head, and down his body for a while. He rimmed a new, mechanical eye.

"What did you do to me?" he asked, his voice nothing more than a hoarse whisper.

"Saved your life," shrugged Edgar. He proceeded to help the robotic-penguin to sit up against the side of the table. Manfredi did not figure it was a good idea to attempt to stand this early on.

"I see that," he nodded, toying with his robotic flipper, "and thanks. But how? What have I become?"

"It wasn't easy," began the Scientist. "That explosion was pretty powerful. You were pretty messed up, but fortunately for you, you had been shielded from most of the fire. What damage you did have was mostly along your right side, and of course your flipper was missing. Other then that your lacerations had already been cauterized by the heat and there was no risk of you bleeding out or getting infection.

"What I was mainly concerned about was your lungs. The intense heat that enveloped the air around you had also entered your lungs, so they were scorched from the inside out. I knew that you only had about an hour left if I didn't get oxygen to your brain, so that was my first priority."

The red-eyed penguin walked over to a bench and grabbed three rubber penguin-beak shaped masks from it, tossing them to Manfredi. Manfredi recognized them as the rebreathers, and also noticed that the round filters were missing from all three.

"They were mostly useless, but I managed to salvage enough parts between the three of them to implement a similar system into your lungs. Instead of filtering oxygen out of water, though, whats inside you has its own oxygen supply. It is limited, but for what its worth, can last quite some time. It'll recharge now that you've started breathing on your own again."

"So you're saying that I don't need to breath anymore?" asked Manfredi.

"Not exactly. It got you through two weeks in a coma, but I'd say you wouldn't have much time in the event you were actually exerting yourself."

"What about my flipper?"

"That was the next step. Fortunately for you, the explosion blew the hole to the armory wider, so I was able to drag you in here. There were enough components and parts laying around that I was able to construct an entirely new flipper for you.

"I've designed robotic parts like this for penguin amputees in the past, but never had I tried to hook it directly up to the nervous system. It was a long shot, but it seems to have paid off. You should have all the functionality that you'd normally find in your flipper, except your sense of touch."

Manfredi lifted his arm, noticing the tiny sounds of motors turning on and off inside of it. He wondered if they were prone to malfunction.

"So I am a robot now?"

"Part robot. More of a cyborg if you think about it."

Manfredi nodded. He wished he had a mirror to better inspect how he looked now. "Why do this for me?" he asked.

"I couldn't let a good life to go waste. Caspian is a murdering traitor, and couldn't let him kill another innocent penguin. I regret ever agreeing to help him, ever spending two years building up this base for him to attempt to concur the world from. I wasn't there in Antarctica, but I heard what went down in your home city. Sarge didn't spare anyone. He needs to be stopped, and there's nobody better to do it than you."

"He killed Johnson, too," added Manfredi.

"Very true. And very nearly you and me. You know, I thought that me and him were good friends once, not unlike you and Johnson. He's completely forgotten about me, though, to the point where he wanted to burn me from his memory, both literally and figuratively."

Manfredi nodded slowly. He stretched his flippers and legs, and then tried to stand. He was shaky at first, but found it easier than he was expecting. He briefly used the table to support himself, but then stood entirely on his own.

"Are we still trapped in here?" he asked.

"No. While I was waiting for you to awake from your coma, I was able to use a few controlled explosions to blow the hatch door open again. Thank goodness there is no more gas in here, because I think that was our only way out. Come to think about it, the only explosives were in here to begin with. I have no idea where Caspain got that grenade."

Manfredi was unsure as well, but he knew Sarge was devious. He wouldn't have doubted if the penguin had stashed it in the bunker from the very day of its completion, knowing he might need it some day.

"So what now?" asked Manfredi. He glanced through the blown-open wall and out the hatch that was across the fish freezer.

"We might as well go our separate ways," sighed Edgar.

"What? Why?"

"You've healed enough that you will be able to go after Fishslader. That is what you want to do, right?" Manfredi nodded. "I've got something else in mind. I didn't notice it until today, but the sun went down for the first time during the two weeks we were in here. I'm assuming that your friend Skipper finally made his way to Antarctica and returned the Sun. I'd like to investigate it more. We were using the Sun to generate electricity, but it seems as if the entire planet stopped rotating while it was missing."

Manfredi was confused momentarily, but nodded understandingly anyway. He, too had no idea what that artifact was capable of, and knew that it could hold great secrets. He also knew Edgar would not abuse it again, after seeing the power that resulted from it once. Finally, the only thing on his mind right was Sarge. He wanted to start hunting that coward as soon as possible.

"So I guess this is goodbye," said Edgar. He picked some things up off of the bench and handed them to Manfredi. One item was Johnson's journal, now blackened with soot. The other was the crooked dagger, its handle wrapped in blue cloth.

Manfredi looked at the two items. He clutched the dagger tightly in his flipper. The wooden handle hugged his feathers. He knew he would use it to kill Sarge. There was no more fitting death for him than to be killed by his own weapon.

The journal, however, he handed back to Edgar.

"You hold onto this," he said. At Edgar's confused look, he said, "read Johnson's notes. Maybe they will contain some helpful information about Sun. Maybe you'll learn more about who he was, and who we were. All I know is that I will let my memories of him remain as they are. Besides, I was never taught to read."

Edgar nodded, holding the journal closely. "Good luck finding Sarge," he offered.

"Good luck with the Sun," returned the robotic-penguin. "And thank you... for everything."

As Manfredi waddled out of the ruined base, he noticed a recently disturbed mound of dirt. At the head of the mound was a wooden plank, and inscribed in it were a few things Manfredi was unsure of. He did recognize one word, however.

_Johnson_.

The robot penguin inhaled the fresh air, a welcome smell compared to the stuffiness of the bunker. In his head he replayed Sarge driving the knife down into Johnson, and he gripped its handle tighter. He did not know where the penguin was, or where to even begin looking, but the world was only so big. Distances would only keep them apart for so long. And when he found that heartless bastard, he was going to make him pay.

Manfredi ran his tongue over his beak, wondering what Sarge's screams of pain would sound like as he drove the blade through his heart.

* * *

The vision flickered out one last time, and Manfredi came back to reality. The three penguins were still standing near him. Skipper had his flippers crossed, brow arched. He looked determined, yet Manfredi could notice the slightest hint of sadness in his expression.

Rico sniffled, wiping a tear out of his eye. Though he had obviously been near crying, he looked noticeably angry. Manfredi wondered why he was so worked up when he had never met Edgar or Johnson before. Maybe the sight of innocent life being taken unfairly upset the penguin.

Private, on the other hand, seemed to be cowering slightly. Manfredi noticed a distinct look of fear on his scarred face. The small bird seemed to be terrified of death, and the sight of Johnson's life being taken by Sarge had probably stunned him. Manfredi turned his attention back to Skipper.

"Now you understand my plight," he said.

"Your plight?" returned Skipper. "Johnson was my brother too, don't forget. This is my fight too."

"_And mine!_" wheezed Rico.

Private didn't say anything.

Manfredi nodded to the other penguins, lifting himself onto his feet. He noticed he was off balance for a while, just like he had been upon first waking up after his transformation.

"What ever happened to Edgar?" asked Skipper.

"That was the last I ever saw of him," answered the cyborg. "I assume I will see him again some day, but I am not sure when."

"_Sarge kaboom!_" cried Rico suddenly, waving his flippers around. Manfredi noticed a smile out of Skipper at the action.

"Don't worry, we'll get our shot at Sarge soon enough," he said.

"So long as I get to see the life leave his eyes, I will be fulfilled," Manfredi affirmed.

"Yeah..." whimpered Private, causing Skipper to shoot him a concerned look. "Yeah!" he said again, more enthusiastically.

"Not long until we reach Antarctica now, boys," announced Skipper, jumping back onto the driver's seat. "Then we'll get our chance."

* * *

**~Author's Note:** Wow! That was so much fun to write! I hope you enjoyed these three flashbacks as much as I did! This chapter is also the absolutely longest one yet (surprisingly longer than chapter 28) I hope it wasn't too long.

On a side note, this chapter brings the word count for this story over 100,000 words. I always say a story can't be judged by its length, but I feel like reaching 100,000 words is a real accomplishment. I look back at this milestone with pride in my heart. (I believe this is the 8th or 9th PoM FF to reach 100,000 words.)

Finally, I'd just like to thank some regular reviewers. You guys keep me going, and I really do appreciate your feedback! Big thanks to **Fishy716, TheSkySpiritsTalentShow, hipturtle15, and Sarahbelle Saunders**. You guys are the absolute best readers ever!

I'm going to be taking a small break from this story to plan out what happens in Antarctica. It won't be more than a week or two, but since this story is coming to its climax, I really want to ensure that its going to be good. Stay tuned!


	40. Antarctica

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 40 – Antarctica**

** "BRING IT IN SLOWLY, RICO.**"

Skipper's voice was calm, even though the other animals in the room were not. The boat made its way through the ice slowly, splitting the thick sheets with ear-shattering cracks. Skipper did not expect to be so far from shore before encountering the ice sheet, but then remembered that it was still winter in Antarctica.

"Can't we continue on foot from here, Skipper? I don't know how much more this ship can take," said Marlene. She was wrapped in a length of green cloth she had fashioned into a sort of jacket, and her paws were covered makeshift mittens and boots. Skipper, had not realized that Marlene and Julien would not be as well-prepared for the icy cold as he and the other penguins were.

"Negative," responded the leader finally, looking down at the global positioning system in his hands. "Kowalski's signal isn't for a few more miles. If Sarge got his raft in here somehow, we're going to get ours in too."

"I think Marlene may have a point, Skippah," spoke up Private. He had a purple scarf wrapped around his face, covering his beak and most of his upper body. "If it's all the same it wouldn't be much slower to continue on foot."

"I'm not particularly interested in hiking across this barren wasteland. If you want to get out and walk, be my guest."

"I am to be thinking dat I will be staying here," said Julien.

Of all the animals in the helm, he was the one who was handling the cold the worst. Skipper , of course, was designed to put up with the cold temperatures. His think feathers and layers of fat made him not even realize that it was below zero. Even Marlene had some form of defense from the cold; her watertight fur lined her body and kept most of the cold air out. Julien on the other hand was accustomed to the tropical air of Madagascar, and as such had pulled a particularly large sock up over his body, using holes for his arms and legs. Those were in turn wrapped in some form of insulation, and his head was entirely wrapped in a scarf. It gave him a very silly appearance, but Skipper knew it was all the lemur could do to keep warm.

"The faster we move the better," affirmed Skipper. He glanced down at the GPS again. "For now we just need to hope that those hostiles are going to leave Kowalski behind on their raft, so we can get to him more easily."

"Do you think that Sarge will give up his assets so easily? He is going to use Kowalski as a means to get to us," said Manfredi solemnly. It was the first time he had spoken in a while.

"_Ship_!" wheezed Rico suddenly, pointing widely towards the ship's bow. Skipper redirected his attention to the horizon, and sure enough, there was a ship-shaped black dot just barely visible through the dim light. It looked entirely encased in ice and was already beginning to become coated in snow.

"You know what to do, Rico," instructed Skipper.

"_K'waski_!" cried Rico unexpectedly, pushing the throttle to maximum. The boat lurched forward, throwing all of the animals off balance.

"Rico, no!" Skipper shouted, but it was too late. There was a loud sound of wood splintering, metal snapping, and ice cracking as the front of the boat was pushed up several degrees. Skipper grabbed onto the captains chair to stop himself from falling over. As soon as the motion stopped, he heard the engine cut out.

"Good Lord, man," said Skipper, "what got into you?"

Rico looked worried as he hopelessly attempted to turn the starter with his flipper. "_K'waski?_" he said, smiling awkwardly.

Skipper slapped his head. "No problem. Looks like you get your way Marlene, we'll have to go on foot from here." He waddled over to his backpack and looked inside. There were a few small cans of fruit, the remaining tuna, Manfredi's rusty dagger, a small bit of rope, and a few emergency flares. "This was everything useful you could find?"

"Yes, unfortunately," answered Marlene. "There actually isn't a whole lot on this boat. I'm just thankful we found enough clothes to keep warm."

Skipper nodded, putting the GPS back into its watertight pouch. "Alright team," he said, looking in Manfredi's direction. The robot-penguin gave him an approving nod, so he continued, "Sarge is probably halfway to the Sun by now, and Kowalski is probably still with them. That doesn't mean we can't check their boat for some weapons, though, so let's head there."

"Out into dat cold?" objected Julien, wrapping his long arms around himself and shivering. "You must be kidding."

Skipper saw Marlene roll her eyes. "You knew where we were going," she said.

"Yeah, de Ant-tar-ika. I was hearing from Maurice dat dis place is an island. Islands should be warm, like de Madagascar."

"This is no tropical island," explained Skipper. "Now lets get going before we loose daylight."

Julien merely nodded in return, knowing that he'd have to brave the cold eventually. Staying on this disabled boat was no good.

As the group climbed off the side of the boat and onto the ice sheets, the sun was already beginning to fade. Skipper had seen it rise only a few hours ago, and knew that it wouldn't remain up long. Skipper knew winter in Antarctica meant very little sunlight, or for a few weeks, none at all. He knew they would have to operate by starlight for most of their time here, but he was thankful for at least the fact that they weren't in a total whiteout already.

The last time he had been here, once with Private, Kowalski, and Rico after hijacking that shipping barge, it had been a total white out. They could hardly see a foot in front of their faces, and it was cause for immediate return to a warmer climate. He had brought the trio here that time on the grounds of showing them the Sun, but changed his mind at the last minute when they arrived. Now, he strongly wished that he hadn't. He wished that he had shown his comrades what the sun was, and then maybe if they knew about the threat, Sarge wouldn't be so close to his goal again.

The whiteout he remembered was not here now, though. Rather than a vicious wind that ruffled his feathers, only a light breeze caressed his beak. It only took a few minutes for the subzero air to numb his feet and bill, but he knew it was causing no harm. He just wasn't used to the cold air again after so long. A couple of mild New York winters had spoiled him.

"What boat will we use to leave, Skippah?" piped up Private suddenly as they walked.

Skipper refocused on the task at hand, and the nodded in the direction of Sarge's larger boat. "Isn't it obvious?" he said.

"But then how will Sarge and his henchmen get out of here?" continued Private, tightening his scarf.

"They are not leaving," answered Manfredi.

"So we're going to leave them here?"

"I guess you could say that," said Skipper.

"Are you sure they'd be okay here? I mean, I don't think there's any food around..."

Skipper whipped around at his specialist, his brow arched. "Why are you concerned for their well-being? They stole Kowalski from us!"

"know they've got Kowalski, but I don't think they've hurt him at all. It just doesn't seem right to leave them here for dead."

"It will not be such a matter of leaving them here _for_ dead," said Manfredi, causing Private to smile slightly, "as leaving them here _dead_."

Private's smile vanished, and his eyes grew wide. "You don't mean..."

"I thought you understood this already, Private?" said Skipper. "I already told you it's either them or us. Did you already forget how Sarge almost killed you and Marlene on the dock?"

"Well, no," said Private, rubbing his new scar that had formed from where Sarge slashed him, "but I don't like this whole revenge thing. It's a vicious circle."

"There is more to it than just revenge," said Manfredi, gazing out at the horizon as they continued walking. "My target is a vile, corrupt penguin. All he cares about is gaining power and respect. He values it more than any penguin's life. He would gladly cut down any animal to get what he wants. He needs to be stopped. And I am going to stop him."

Private gulped, looking frightened, "You don't think he could change?"

"You witnessed what happened inside the bunker the day Johnson died. When there was no reason to still be fighting, only reason to work together, my target cut down a young, innocent penguin. It was all because he wanted to escape that prison, and he did not care what happened to us other penguins. When Johnson stood in between him and that goal, my target ended his life without regret."

"Why should there be more bloodshed, though. There's no point to it."

"I thought the same thing in the bunker. My thoughts were wrong though. There is will always be bloodshed."

"At any point in time, someone or something on this planet is always going to want something else dead," affirmed Skipper.

"I don't think I'd be able to do it, if it came down to me..."

"Do what, Private?" asked Skipper.

"You know... kill Sarge," he stuttered.

"I will be the one to end my target's wretched life. There is no need to worry," calmed Manfredi. He still did not take his eyes from the horizon. Skipper knew he was looking in the direction of the Penguin City, knowing that they would go right through it to get to the temple of the Sun as quickly as possible.

Private nodded at Manfredi's comment, then said, "What about his henchmen, though? What if I need to kill one of them. Or worse. What if one of us winds up getting killed?"

"A necessary sacrifice," said Manfredi unexpectedly, making all of the other animals turn in his direction. He didn't seem to notice, though, and continued walking.

"Wait, you mean you'd let one of us die to get to Sarge?" Marlene said, surprised.

"Nothing is more important then to see the life leave his eyes," answered the bulky penguin. Private stopped walking suddenly, making the others stop as well. Manfredi continued walking as though he didn't noticed.

"So your goal is more important to you than our lives?" he said, balling his flippers into fists.

Manfredi stopped, but without turning to look at Private, said, "Yes."

"Then you're no different than Sarge anyway. At least no better," shot Private. Manfredi tensed his flippers and Skipper saw him look to the ground. The leader wished that Private had not compared him to Sarge. He knew Manfredi would not stand to be alluded to his enemy.

"You've killed before, haven't you?" continued Private.

"That's enough," commanded Skipper, waving his flippers.

"How does that make him any different than Sarge, then, Skippah?" asked Private, redirecting his attention towards the leader.

Without warning, Manfredi charged at Private. Private flinched hard, pulling his face back from the enraged penguin's first. Skipper moved to stop Manfredi but halted when the penguin froze, his flipper mere inches from the young penguin's face. The leader could see his flipper quivering, and a tear streak down his face. However, he didn't know if it was because of the cold blowing in his eye or the hurtful things Private had said.

"What you say is true," said Manfredi, not lowering his flipper. His normally calm, slow drawl made way for something that Skipper had not heard from the penguin in some time. It was anger. The penguin continued, "I have killed before. Several weeks ago, in an alley, I ended the life of an innocent pigeon. He did nothing wrong, merely insulted me. It reminded me of my target, though, and I lost control of my own actions. As he plummeted to the ground, lifeless, in my eyes it became something new.

"I witnessed the death of my love. My fiance. Dead by my hand. _By my hand_. So you see, Private," he said, finally lowing his flipper and taking a step back from the frightened bird, "this is where my target and I differ. While he does not care who died for him to achieve his goal, I am filled with regret at it.

"There is not a day that goes by where I do not regret the decisions I have made. They have resulted in the deaths of everyone close to me. It resulted in the death of that pigeon."

Private whimpered out a meager, "Sorry," before moving away. He slid in behind Rico whereas Manfredi reorientated himself towards Sarge's ship.

"Manfredi's right," said Skipper to Private as they began walking again. "When we first met in the city, that pigeon was all he could think about."

Private said nothing.

"As for one of us getting killed, there is no need to worry. None of us are dieing anytime soon." Skipper affirmed, trying to boost Private's confidence.

His own confidence had been shaken by Manfredi's comments, though. Would the robot penguin really sacrifice of of their lives in exchange for Sarge's? That wasn't the Manfredi that Skipper knew. Though he already knew that the Manfredi he knew was long gone, the comment made him with wish that past Manfredi was still here. Past Manfredi would do anything for his brothers, even throw himself into the line of fire. This Manfredi seemed goal-driven, objective, and even a little selfish. Skipper suddenly hoped a life or death situation wouldn't fall into Manfredi's hands.

Trying to get his mind off of the robot-penguin, he glanced down at the GPS in his flippers. Kowalski's dot was definitely moving away from them, towards the south pole.

"Kowalski's not on the ship," he said after the several moments of silence.

"I just hope he's still unharmed," Marlene offered.

"No sense in charging out after him now. We would never catch up with them. We need to take any supplies we can from their ship and then meet them at the temple."

"_Aye-aye!"_ cried Rico.

* * *

**~Author's Note:** Short, transitional chapter. Hope it wasn't too boring!

I've been drawing some scenes this story and posting them to Deviant Art. If you'd like to check them out, search up Cudabear. They should pop up.


	41. Concern

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 41 – Concern**

**WAS HE CRAZY?**

Marlene couldn't believe her ears when she had heard Manfredi's statement. Would the penguin really put his own hunger for revenge before his friend's lives? He would really sacrifice one of them—if not all of them—to get back at Sarge? Even the idea of it made her feel a little anger towards the robot-penguin, but she didn't act on it. She knew that arguing amongst themselves was not the thing to do right now. Besides, Manfredi had very nearly struck Private. She wasn't particularly interested in irking the metal bird any more, and risk getting punched herself.

"I am thinking dat Manfredi is being a little _loco_," whispered Julien as he leaned into Marlene's ear.

"He's not crazy," Marlene whispered back. "It's just like he's so consumed by hatred that he can't see the good in anything."

"Well I am not going to die so he can get back at dose evil penguins," Julien said, looking surprisingly serious.

"Skipper wouldn't let any of us get killed over this. You heard what he said."

"Until he is being dead," Julien said, his face now glazed over with fear. "Den nothing is between us and dat crazy penguin."

"I trust Skipper, though. None of us are going to get killed or even hurt," Marlene returned, though she was not entirely faithful in her own words. She wanted to believe that they would all come out okay, but after what Manfredi had said she wasn't so sure.

"So long as de crazy robot doesn't snap," Julien said under his breath, gesturing to the cyborg penguin leading the group.

"Be careful what you say, Julien," returned the Otter, crossing her arms, "I 'snap' sometimes, too."

Julien looked thoughtfully back at Marlene before continuing, "I am supposing you are right. Why haven't you gone berserk yet, anyway?"

"Wondering the same thing myself, actually." Marlene wasn't sure if it was the cold or the fear of becoming separated from the group and dieing that was helping her keep her cool. She had figured that as soon as she stepped off the confined spaces of the boat, she would black out. Antarctica was a very wide open space, and wide open spaces seemed to set her off best. Or, maybe it was just slides. Either way, she hoped with all of her heart that she could stay sane for the remainder of their journey. The last thing she wanted was to cause more problems for the group than she already had.

"If you do wind up going crazy and stuff, can you please be directing your rage away from us and towards dose other fishy penguins?" said Julien, smiling as if it was a joke. Marlene didn't find it so funny.

"I don't know what happens when I loose it Julien," answered Marlene. "I mean, I almost put that lady in the hospital for no good reason."

"Maybe it could be coming in usefulness," responded the ring-tailed lemur, his face surprisingly bright despite their situation. Marlene nodded. "If it happens, though, de king will be sure to protect you."

"I think crazy me will be able to handle herself," smirked Marlene, though she was appreciative of Julien's gesture.

"What are you two talking about back there?" came Skipper's voice from the front of the group.

"Just worried about what's going to happen when we confront Sarge," called Marlene.

"We'll worry about that when we get there," said Skipper. Though the statement was simple, Marlene found some relief in it. Though they had a few shaky days in front of them, all they needed to concern themselves with for the time being was the present moment, and presently, they were approaching Sarge's ship.

The boat itself was completely frozen in the ice. It gave evidence that the ice had not extended so far from the mainland until less than twelve hours ago. From the looks of it, Sarge had also driven his boat too far and it was pushed up onto the ice a bit, but there was no visible damage as bad as their ruined boat. The entire boat itself was made of solid metal, whereas their boat had been made of rotting wood. Marlene thought it was some sort of research vessel rather than a simple fishing trawler. It could have easily been a tug boat, though.

As they approached, Skipper climbed a rope that had been left behind. Presumably, the other penguins had used it to exit the craft. Marlene was glad to see it, though, because the high walls of the ship prevented any other entry. With some trouble, she and the other penguins managed to heave themselves over the edge of the railing and fell onto the deck.

"Alright team," announced Skipper when everyone was accounted for, "collect anything useful you can find. We need food, supplies, and weapons. Knowing Sarge, their might even be some gauss rifles on board, so we definitely need to keep an eye out for those."

"Firearms, Skippah?" said Private, looking confused and a bit scared. He still was keeping Rico between himself and Manfredi.

"Yes. Things will be a lot easier if we can fight fire with fire." he affirmed. Private didn't seem to happy with the answer, but Marlene could tell he knew that at least Geir was already armed, and that put them at a huge disadvantage.

The animals split up to all different sections of the ship, and after a few minutes, had rejoined on top of the boat with the useful supplies they found.

"They didn't seem to have much food left," said Private tossing down the items in his arms, "but I did find a few dried fish. It'll be nice to have something other then that canned tuna to eat. I also found a first-aid kit, but there wasn't anything in it except for a pair of scissors."

"_Ka-boom!_" cried Rico, throwing down several firecrackers an a butane lighter. Marlene had no idea why there were on a boat like this, but she was glad to see them. She knew Rico's use of explosives had been invaluable in the past, and was sure that it would become useful now. She briefly imagined Sarge holding one of the firecrackers as it exploded, but then wiped the vision from her mind.

"We found some more clothes so we don't freeze," offered Marlene, gesturing to Julien. He had ditched his sock and was now wearing a makeshift jacket, like her own, "and a few more tools." She set down a hammer, a screwdriver, and wrench.

"Unfortunately," spoke Manfredi slowly, "no firearms. In fact, there is no evidence that there was ever a supply of firearms present here at one point. No empty magazines or gun polish. That rockhopper is probably the only one with one."

"At least they're not all armed to the teeth then," said Marlene. She was not particularly interested in wielding one of the death-machines, and was glad to hear she wouldn't have to.

Skipper looked down at the items, a distinct look of disappointment on his face. "Looks like we've only got unconventional weapons then," he said, picking up the hammer and swinging it around. "They'll have to do."

"There is being one other thing, Skipper," said Julien, who had not shown what he had found yet, "but I am not being sure dat you want to see it."

"Hand it over," commanded Skipper, and Julien complied by passing the papers he had found towards the leader penguin. He glanced over the drawings on the paper, and then said, "what does this mean?"

"I am guessing dat it is de smart fishy-penguin's writing," the tall lemur returned. "He always likes to draw dose pictures and things."

Skipper nodded understandingly, then showed the drawings to the others. On the papers were draw several rough sketches of some land mass that Marlene presumed was Antarctica, with a pseudo-compass, distance scale, and a path of trajectory. "Kowalski was helping them get here," he concluded simply.

"That doesn't mean anything special," defended Private quickly, "they probably forced Kowalski into navigating for them."

"That could be the case," answered Skipper, flipping the papers back around to look at them some more. "I don't think Sarge actually knew how to get here on his own."

"Do not you think its strange that your friend Kowalski would go through all of this trouble to get my target to Antarctica? He has drawn very detailed maps," said Manfredi with a blank expression. "Would it have not been wiser to navigate my target away from his goal?"

"That's not so easy to do if you've got a gun pointed at your head," countered Skipper. Manfredi nodded, but his face didn't change.

"I'm sure that Kowalski knew that we'd catch up to him if he took them to Antarctica," said Marlene, thinking about why Kowalski would help out their enemy. "I mean, he doesn't know about the Sun yet."

"Yeah, but it's all a bit suspicious," answered Skipper. "My first lieutenant wouldn't just take them exactly where they wanted to go. He's smarter then that. He must have realized that they would be lost without his help, and we could have rescued him much earlier."

A few moments of silence passed before Manfredi interjected, "Mutiny is most common among the second-in-command."

Unsurprisingly, Private scowled profusely at this. Marlene could tell he wanted to say something to Manfredi for accusing Kowalski of such a crime, but he remained calm at risk of angering the metal-bird again.

"_K'waski loyal,_" wheezed Rico, not as modest. "_No help bad guys_."

"Good call, Rico," agreed Skipper. "Kowalski is one of the most trustworthy penguins I know. There's no way he would do this without being forced to."

"Sarge has a way of convincing penguins to make terrible choices, Skipper," answered Manfredi. Marlene thought back to how Skipper said he, Manfredi and Johnson had been roped into joining the Penguin Army by merely Caspian's word. It was a valid point.

"Kowalski wouldn't fall for tricks like that," argued Private, "he's far too smart."

"The longer we stand around here talking about him, the further he's going to get away. We need to move out," interjected Skipper. All of the others nodded in agreement. He put a few of the items into the backpack and tossed a few of the larger ones to Rico for him to swallow. "We've got about a day of walking ahead of us before we reach the Penguin City."

"Penguin City?" Marlene asked. "Isn't that where you come from, Manfredi?"

Manfredi looked out on the horizon. Marlene expected he was looking in the direction they were going to head. "Yes," he spoke finally, "though it is not as I remember it. A ruin is all that remains in place of my hometown."

"Sarge shot the hell out of the place and then blew it up the first time he got his hands on the sun," explained Skipper. "We didn't find a single survivor."

"It will be painful to return to the place where everything was taken from me," narrated Manfredi as if he was in a trance. "Hopefully it will be unrecognizable. I do not wish to tarnish the memories I have of my home before my target smashed it to pieces."

Marlene worried about traveling through the Penguin City. She wondered if Manfredi would go completely crazy upon returning to the place where he experienced such grief in the past. She wondered if he would snap and turn on all of them. She thought back to the robot-penguin's story about the pigeon he slaughtered and briefly compared herself to the small bird. She would never provoke Manfredi with an insult... but Private might. She glanced at the small bird and hoped that he could keep his beak shut. She glanced to Skipper. Even though the possibility of Manfredi attacking them existed, she was filled with a little confidence again at the fact Skipper would be the voice of reason. Manfredi would listen to Skipper, if nobody else.

"Time to get headed out, we've wasted enough time here already," ordered Skipper. Manfredi nodded in agreement, and then the animals made their way off of the boat.

"I hope everyone's prepared for a long nighttime walk," offered Skipper as the sky faded to darkness and the group began their journey.


	42. Delusion

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 42 – Delusion**

** THE NIGHT WAS DARK AS THEY APPROACHED THE PENGUIN CITY.**

They had been walking for what seemed like it could have been days, and Manfredi could hear grunts of exhaustion from the animals around him. Marlene and Julien were shivering as they trudged through the snow, Private was swaying back and forth with exhaustion, and Rico struggled to keep his eyes open. The only two of the group that still seemed to be on high alert were himself and Skipper.

It had been dark for a long while, but Manfredi had lost track of the hours. He knew that Antarctica during this time of the year had nights of never ending darkness, broken by sunlight only for a few graceful hours. He had grown up here, and had been accustomed to the four weeks of blackness signaling that winter had arrived. That had been long ago, though, and he had forgotten what it was like to yearn for the slightest amount of sunlight.

"Kowalski's signal was stationary inside the city for a long time," Skipper told Manfredi, the light from the GPS screen illuminating his face. "They must have rested there. They're on the move again now."

"They must have used the ruined city as shelter from the night winds," affirmed the robot-penguin.

Skipper nodded, and then looked at thePenguin City, which was now coming over the horizon. Manfredi was cautiously avoiding letting his eyes meet with the sight of the destroyed city. He remembered the great feeling of grief that had surged through his body when he had laid eyes on his destroyed hometown the first time. It took his breath away, and his heart skipped so many beats he thought for sure it was going to stop. He had felt dizzy and faint upon looking at the smoldering heaps that were once the homes of his friends and neighbors.

His mind had raced, wondering if there was anything he could do. The faces of his friends flashed through his mind until he remembered his fiance. Sarah had been shot in the head outside of their ice bungalow. He remembered her lifeless eyes, full of fear. He remembered how she clutched the smashed ivory shell of his child. He remembered how the precious, life-giving fluid seeped out of it and onto her feathers...

He shook his head as his organic eye began to well up with tears. He had never given her a proper burial, but he knew her body would be long gone by now. He wouldn't have to worry about witnessing that tragic picture again. At least it wouldn't happen outside of his memories.

"Are you going to be okay?" asked Skipper suddenly, but quietly. Manfredi looked up at his ex-teammate and noticed the concerned look on his face. "We can always walk around, if you can't handle going back through there."

Manfredi thought about this option for a moment. He would be able to avoid the scene that had plagued his nightmares ever since he had first witnessed it. It was awfully tempting, but Manfredi knew that they needed to rest. There was no shelter nearby, and the city was the only place that would give them refuge from the wind. Besides, his sanity was all that he had left. If he lost it upon reentering his hometown, he knew that there was no sense in continuing fighting. He needed to face those memories again, and he looked up at the city.

"No," he answered Skipper slowly, "we will go through the city."

The flat-headed penguin still looked concerned, but nodded in approval. He announced the plan to the other animals, and they picked up the pace in hopes of being able to get away from the biting wind.

Manfredi, meanwhile, still had his eyes locked onto the city. It was not as he had remembered. The last sight he had of the decimated town was not one he had wanted to relive, but what laid before him was not what he was expecting. What he had seen upon leaving Antarctica for the last time was once tall, proud snow and ice constructs smashed to pieces. He saw smoldering craters where explosives had detonated. He saw hundreds of bodies littering the ground, the blood tinting the snow dark red. He saw Gauss rifle cartridges strewn about, emptied during the massacre. His once proud city was nothing more than a wreckage.

The city before him, though, had been rebuilt. Many of the structures had been reconstructed on top of their old foundations, and most of them out of the same ice and snow that the previous ones had been built out of. As they approached and passed some of the outlying buildings, Manfredi noted the road before him. He had expected the carved ice to be coated with two years of drifting snow, but it was as if it had been cleared recently. Not all of the buildings were rebuilt, and groups of them remained in shambles, but Manfredi couldn't shake the feeling that something had been hard at work here.

After walking a short ways, they approached the town center. Penguin City was not very large, and the town square had been the gathering place for any sort of meeting or party. Some of the tallest and most beautiful ice structures at one point had lined its sides, but now they were hastily constructed igloos. From the town square several narrow, ice-paved streets diverged into a star shape. Along those roads were more buildings. It was arranged in such a way so that when standing in the center of the square, one could see almost all of the houses in the town.

"Something's not right," came Skipper's voice. He looked on edge as he slipped the GPS back into the pack. "Last I remember this place was completely destroyed."

"That was a long time ago, wasn't it Skipper?" asked Marlene. "The survivors probably rebuilt."

"There were no survivors," answered Manfredi quickly. He had checked thoroughly when he, Skipper, and Johnson had entered the city those two long years ago. Not a soul had remained after the Penguin Army moved through.

"Yeah," agreed Skipper, "and if anyone else moved in to rebuild, where are they?"

"_Creepy_," wheezed Rico.

"Stay on your guard, everyone," instructed Skipper.

Unlike the others around him, Manfredi remained calm. He was confused. He had checked, there were no survivors. He was sure of it. That didn't explain how the city was being maintained and how the structures had been rebuilt, though. He diverted from the group as they walked to a particularly large, refurbished structure and began walking down one of the narrow pathways.

The others didn't seem to notice him as they disappeared behind the corner of the building. He continued waddling down the pathway. He would never forget where his home had been. He had constructed it himself, carving out the ice blocks it had been built out of.

He stood in front of it, the wind gently shuffling his feathers. He shivered slightly as he pictured Sarah laying lifeless in the snow outside of it. He wiped the thought from his memory and attempted to focus on the house itself.

It had been rebuilt to some extent, but it was nowhere near what it had been when he lived in it. Whoever had attempted to recreate it had missed several key details. It was more of a dome-shaped igloo now than the cube he had constructed. He pushed forward, and upon pushing a hanging cloth door out of the way, entered the hut.

The nostalgia hit him like a ton of bricks. Even though the house had looked different on the outside, it looked almost identical from the inside. Everything was in place. The ice-block kitchen counter, the driftwood table. He envisioned Sarah standing at the counter, chopping a fish, his unhatched egg held warmly between her feet. It wasn't until he heard a slight whimper that he was torn from his flashback.

He peered beneath the table and saw a terrified looking ball of down feathers. It was cowering, emitting the tiny whimpering he had heard. He looked at the penguin innocently, and it averted its eyes from his own. They were emerald green. Sarah had those eyes.

He reached a flipper under the table, but the baby penguin slid away from it. He wasn't trying to torture it, but it fascinated him. The deep green eyes, the stout face, the short beak. It was exactly as he imagined his child might look like. He wanted to touch it. He wanted to feel its soft down feathers run between his own. He wanted to lift it and snuggle it into his chest. He wanted to hear it whisper, "I love you, daddy."

He reached forward and grabbed the penguin. It struggled and began to cry. He lifted it and it began wailing. He tried to hold it to his chest and it kicked him. He set it down as gently as he could and it raced out of the building.

Was that... his own? Had it somehow survived? He wasn't sure. Part of him wanted to believe any sliver of hope that his son or daughter had survived the assault. He wanted to believe that he hadn't lost everything. That there was still something besides revenge that was worth fighting for. The rational side of him spoke a different story, though. He had seen the egg, smashed to pieces. His first-born had never hatched. It had died without inhaling its first breath of oxygen, without seeing what its mother or father looked like. That baby penguin had not been his child. It had merely been a coincidence.

As Manfredi turned to leave the home, Sarah's figure faded in at the kitchen counter again. This time, a small baby penguin ran up to her and tugged on her feathers. She bent over and handed it a piece of fish. She then looked directly at Manfredi, straightening up.

"What could have been," she said to him, her voice nothing more than a mere whisper.

"I'm... sorry," Manfredi responded as the apparition flickered in front of him. He fell to his knees in the darkness and wiped a tear off his cheek.

"It's too late for sorry," said the apparition.

"No, no it's not!" Manfredi slammed his fists on the ground. The baby penguin pushed itself deeper into into its mother's feathers.

"We were going to raise a family."

"I wanted to raise a family..."

"No. You wanted glory, fame, adventure. Not me. Not us," Sarah's figure argued. Manfredi felt her words cut deep into him. He considered ending it all right now. Ending the pain, the sorrow. If he had his knife, he might have just plunged it deep into his own chest.

"I tried my greatest to save you..." as Manfredi choked out his words, Sarah's figure faded away. He grasped for it as it disappeared. He hoped to feel the warmth of her feathers against his own. He didn't want her to go. He huddled on the floor, sobbing.

He looked up again after a short while and saw the figure of his target. His blind eye was staring directly down into the cyborg's robotic one.

"You really should not have told me about your family," it said, simply. It laughed as an egg appeared in its flippers. "Maybe then I wouldn't have purposely sought to kill them."

"Shut up!" cried Manfredi in rage. He swung his flipper, but it went right through his target's floating form. It laughed at him.

"Like always, your loved ones suffer the consequences of your actions."

His heart rate accelerated, Manfredi raced out of the house. Behind him he heard the sound of an egg splattering against the wall, and his gut tied itself into a knot. He knew coming here was a mistake. His vision was blurry from his tears as he raced out into the cold night air.

Suddenly a deep voice spoke to him. He didn't hear it though, and kept running. He barreled into another penguin standing just outside the house, sending it toppling over. He himself rolled several feet in the snow and was disorientated by the fall. He stood up after regaining his bearings and looked around him.

A group of around ten penguins were standing in a group around him. On some of their faces was anger, some fear, but mostly confusion. The small, green-eyed penguin he had found in the house was clutched into one of their legs, shivering in the arctic air.

He looked at the penguin. It again turned its face away from him. He thought back to Sarah's words. _What could have been_. Maybe, what could have been could still be.

The robotic-penguin stepped forward, eyes locked on the baby penguin. An emperor penguin stepped forward and puffed out its orange chest in defense of the move. He was considerably taller than Manfredi, and towered over him. His brow was arched with anger, and his beak was clenched tightly shut.

"Come any closer to this one and I'll feed you to the lion seals," he spoke. his voice was deep, commanding. This was the largest penguin of the group, and the one that Manfredi had barreled into.

Manfredi ignored the larger penguin's warning and stepped closer. It was too close for the emperor, though, and he shoved Manfredi away. Manfredi stumbled backward, loosing his balance. Several of the other penguins stepped forward threateningly, mumbling angry things.

"You come here and harass our children," said the large penguin. "I suggest you leave before you start any more trouble."  
"I just wanted to hold him," returned the cyborg, feeling some anger building up inside of himself. He clenched his flippers into tight balls.

The emperor took a step closer to Manfredi, then warned, "He is not yours to hold. Now leave."

Manfredi was angered by this statement. He felt as though the baby penguin was his child, his first-born that he had lost. Somehow it had survived, and he was going to rescue it. He had to rescue it. All that stood between it and him were these penguins.

"You obviously speak the language," announced the large penguin, "so stop playing stupid and get out of here!"

Manfredi scowled at this, taking a step forward. This caused the rest of the penguins to ready themselves for a fight and they all balled their flippers. Manfredi didn't care about them, though, he only cared about the baby penguin and the large emperor standing between him and it.

The large penguin was no longer an emperor, though. It was now a short, round, flat-headed penguin. A penguin with a blind right eye. A penguin he hated.

Without warning he charged at the emperor and launched himself into the air. With a swift kick across the face he sent the large penguin to the ground before the other penguins could react. When they did, however, Manfredi was ready.

The first one charged at him stupidly, swinging its flippers around wildly. He tripped it, and smacked it across the face with his flipper as it fell. The second bird was smaller and he delivered a swift chop to its gut. It tumbled over itself, out of breath. The third attempted to kick him, and he grabbed its foot. Using it as leverage he flipped the penguin over itself and it landed on top of another penguin.

The other birds fell in similar ways. They were strong, but slow and without any sort of combat experience or training. Manfredi took advantage of several opening, and within a few minutes, they all lay on the cold ice.

The largest penguin had gotten up again, though. He had a small trickle of blood running down his beak from Manfredi's powerful kick. The determination and anger he had shown before was no longer apparent. He looked scared as he attempted to shield the small bird from the maniacal penguin approaching him. Manfredi's flippers and beak quivered from rage, and he was ready to strike. His target was weak now, and all he had to do was deliver one quick chop to its neck...

"Manfredi, stop!" cried a familiar voice from behind him. He whipped around and saw five familiar animals racing up the street to him. Skipper had been the one who called, and he was waving his flippers around like mad.

Manfredi felt dizzy as he turned back around. The emperor penguin across from him no longer looked like his target. He looked like an innocent emperor penguin, with blood smeared on his face. The other penguins Manfredi had beaten to the ground stirred around him. He heard moans of pain. He saw one penguin with a chunk of his beak now missing.

Had he really done this? Had he really attacked all of these penguins?

Skipper had caught up to Manfredi and grabbed his flippers, attempting to hold him back. However, Manfredi had already fallen limp and did not struggle. Skipper realized this and released him. Manfredi stared at the ground, wondering about the baby penguin.

"Are you guys okay?" asked Marlene, approaching the only penguin still standing. As she stepped closer the penguin turned defensively away from her.

"Stay back," he said, his voice quavering, "I'm warning you!"

"We're not here to hurt you," offered Private, raising his flippers to show that he was not a threat.

Some of the penguins were picking themselves up from the snow, smoothing their ruffled feathers. Manfredi glanced for a moment at all of them. They had deep scowls on their faces. The emperor with the missing chunk of beak gingerly touched it with his flipper.

"That's what the last group of you penguins who came through here said."

"'Last group of penguins'?" repeated Skipper, curiously.

"We tried to make peace with them, but then one of them shot my brother for no reason," it explained.

"Don't worry, we're not like those penguins. In fact, we're trying to catch up to them. They've captured one of my friends, and we're trying to rescue him."

"Why in the world did that freak attack us then?" came one of the penguin's voices.

Manfredi was still frozen to the ground. He wasn't sure why a sudden, overwhelming sense of fear had overtaken him, but he was unable to speak. Skipper continued.

"This place is Manfredi's old hometown. He might have seen you as a threat to it."

"A threat?" scoffed the largest emperor, "we've been living here for over a year. This place was a complete wasteland before we came and fixed it up. The only threat here is you!"

"We're not here to fight!" insisted Marlene.

"Yeah," Skipper agreed. "We only came here to get out of the wind for a while and rest. We've been walking for a long time. I'm telling you, we're all allies here."

"Maybe so," nodded the large penguin, "but that robot thing isn't my ally."

Manfredi couldn't help but feel guilty for what he had done. He thought back to the pigeon in the ally, and how he had lost all common reason. He remembered how the pigeon had turned into his target, just as the emperor penguin had. At least this time Skipper had prevented him from killing another innocent. Still, damage had been done. He'd never see that baby penguin again after tonight.

The large penguin continued, "You're welcome to stay, but he must leave."

Skipper arched his brow. "Manfredi's a good friend of ours. He stays with us."

"Then you all must leave," the large penguin answered. His face looked unmoving. Manfredi understood though. He wouldn't trust anyone after being attacked by them, either. He knew that he had made a huge mistake. He had lost his sanity. Without that, he was nothing. Nothing but a cold blooded killer. Coming back into the Penguin City had been a mistake, and staying here would be a bigger one. He decided to speak.

"I will leave," announced. Manfredi. The large penguin smiled slightly at the comment. "I will be just outside the city. I will return at first sunlight so that we may continue."

"Are you sure, Manfredi?" asked Skipper. Manfredi could tell that the leader knew Rico, Private, Marlene, and Julien were tired and needed a place to rest. Marlene and Julien, in particular, might freeze to death if they didn't get out of the wind for a while. Manfredi, on the other hand, could put up with the nighttime cold.

The robot-penguin nodded, and began walking away from the group. As he walked, he glanced at the baby green-eyed penguin.

_What could have been_.

* * *

**~Author's Note: **I hope i'm not overplaying the whole "Manfredi is insane" routine. I do realize he has flipped out in many other chapters, but I felt it was necessary to show how he would react upon returning to his hometown. I think it adds further depth to his character. Though I do switch POVs between Manfredi, Marlene, Skipper, and Alice, Manfredi is the focal point of the entire story. Let me know what you thought about it, please!


	43. Backup

Skipper's log. 02:00 Hours on September the 16th.

"_I always pictured hell to be some sort of lava-filled inferno. Turns out its actually a giant block of ice. _

_ "I have never seen the amount of destruction that I see now in my life. I've seen the aftermath of conflict before, with families torn apart, and houses burned, but never on this scale. Manfredi's Penguin City, his hometown, is nothing more than a smoldering crater. As the Penguin Army moved through, they didn't leave a single building standing. These Arctic penguins built their homes out of the ice and snow. They were never meant to be put up to explosives and gunfire, and have all toppled. _

_ "It wasn't until we got closer that the real feelings of desperation sank in. Manfredi always said the Penguin City was not that large; maybe only one thousand penguins. The sheer number of bodies laying in the streets makes it seem like only a few hours ago, there had been many more. Fishslader didn't spare a single life, it seems. Even Manfredi's fiance and child weren't spared. Johnson and I couldn't bare to see Manfredi cry over his lost love, so we left him to mourn for a while and went off to look for survivors._

_ "I wish I hadn't. It seems each time I think I witness a body stir, I only come upon another dead penguin. I have mostly given up, now, and I am now just roaming these streets. If hell exists, this is definitely what its like. The death and destruction that this place reeks of is nearly too much to take. I'm not even from here, but I still am wrecked. I'm trying not to let it overtake me, but a feeling of desperation is slowly rising inside me. _

_ "Johnson doesn't seem to be doing much better. He tried to wake a few of the deceased up, but then I saw him making his way out of the city. Its better that he does I feel – I don't want him to become too scared by this before we even encounter Sarge. That bastard did this to weaken us, and more importantly, weaken Manfredi. I hope that he can hold together through this. There will be plenty of time to mourn after we stop Sarge from getting the Sun. For now, there's something worth fighting for. I'll probably tell him that when we meet up again later._

_ "I wish now that I hadn't underestimated the the length of Fishslader's corruption. It's a mistake that I will be sure to never make again."_

* * *

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 43 – Backup**

**IT WAS LIKE NOTHING SHE HAD EVER SEEN BEFORE.**

She always knew that there were penguins living in Antarctica. In fact, she was entirely unaware about the other locations penguins could be found until she became a zookeeper. As a young girl she used to see the nature documentaries on Arctic emperor penguins. On those documentaries, though, they would always be shown on some glacier, huddling together for warmth. Never had they shown something like this. Was it possible that she was one of the first people to lay eyes on a true penguin civilization?

It was an entire city, built by penguins out of snow and ice. She had no idea where they even got the tools to perform such a feat, let alone the know-how. The strange thing was the fact that the buildings that stood around her resembled ones that a human might build. Had the penguins gotten their inspiration from the human cities?

There was one thing she was sure of, though. She didn't doubt that penguins were capable of building such a monument. After the last two months of following her own penguins around, watching their every move, inferring what they communicated, she realized that she barely knew what they were capable of.

"This place looks like it hasn't seen the light of day in years," commented Mr. Green as they made their way down one of the streets. He, a few of his interns, and Issac were all huddled into one group, shielding their faces from the cold. Behind them they pulled a sled with supplies and portable shelter. Alice was glad that Issac happened to have Arctic survival gear laying around.

"I wonder who be buildin' this here city," the crazy sailor responded. "Ain't heard of no people livin' in Antarctica."

"This place wasn't built by people. It was built by penguins," offered Alice.

Issac let out a loud, horse laugh that made Alice flinch. "Good one," he said, "And I s'pose the long lost treasure of Blackbeard be buried her as well?"

Alice shook her head, glancing at Andrew. He seemed to be as equally angered by the man's disbelief. "I'm telling you," she told him finally, "the penguins I'm talking about aren't anything normal. If anyone built a city in Antarctica, it was them."

There was some muffled discussion from the interns, but they seemed to agree. They had also been watching the penguin's feeds for long enough to conclude it was possible. "Besides," spoke Mr. Green. He had swapped out his suit jacket for a much warmer one. "What group of humans do you think would build an entire city out of snow and ice?"

"You're with this lass?" answered Issac as if he was surprised. "I'd have to say you two probably built it, based on how crazy you already are." He laughed as he spoke. Alice could feel anger rising inside of her, but she suppressed it. He was their only way home.

"It was penguins, Issac," continued Andrew. Alice was glad that he was on her side.

"Well where be these penguins now, then?"

"Not quite sure," Alice said, grabbing one of the monitors from the interns. "When our penguins moved through here, there was a group of emperor penguins they got into a fight with. They might be in hiding, now."

"Penguins, fighting? So they just be cawin' at eachother?"  
"Not quite. Our penguins are very skilled in some sort of martial arts. They could kick all of our asses if they wanted to."

To this, Issac laughed again. "Even if what you say be true, I ain't gonna be bested by no bird," he said, raising his fists.

As if on cue, three emperor penguins waddled around the corner of a building. As soon as they saw the humans, they puffed out their orange chest feathers and attempted to look bigger than normal. They made clicking noises to each other, but stood their ground.

"So there be penguins here after all," Issac said, cracking his knuckles. He turned to Alice. "Time to prove you wrong."

He stepped closer to the emperor penguins. "Issac, don't mess with them. They just want to be left alone," urged Alice. She never enjoyed the idea of people beating animals senseless, but before this whole adventure she never would have done anything about it. Now, however, she felt compelled to stop Issac before he hurt them. She had seen on the monitor how these penguins fell easily to that one robotic super-penguin. She didn't think they'd be able to defend themselves against Issac.

Issac was already charging at them though, shouting at them and raising his fists. She cried for him to stop, but he didn't hear her. To her surprise, however, the three emperor penguins were more than able to defend themselves.

First, they locked their flippers together. Then, in one swift movement, two of the penguins heaved the third penguin into the air, who landed on Issac's face. Issac stumbled from surprise and tripped over a piece of ice. The penguin on top of him began swinging its flippers wildly, but Alice was sure he wasn't doing any damage. Issac was yelling for help, but Alice let this go on for a few moments.

Eventually she stepped in and yanked the penguin off of Issac. Setting it down gently, it waddled off and rejoined the other two, clattering out something with its beak. Alice helped Issac up, who wiped his face. Alice thought they were tears for a moment, but then convinced herself otherwise.

"Damn birds caught me off guard," muttered the sailor as he jabbed his hands into his pockets. The penguins across from them were waving their flippers wildly, showing them they wanted them to leave.

"We should get out of here," concluded Alice. Mr. Green nodded, and the group made their way out of the town. The three penguins followed them to the outskirts of the city, and then watched as they made their way back out into the barren wasteland. Alice briefly hoped they were going in the same direction as her penguins were, as it was hard to tell.

She looked at the monitor she had taken from one of the interns. It turned out to be the feed of the captured penguin that was helping the penguins that had attacked her. She had thought about this penguin for a while, and concluded it was the tall, round-headed one. Based on how the other penguins had been acting both before and after the flat-headed leader had returned, her best guess told her that he was his best friend. She wasn't sure if her own judgment was clouding that conclusion, though.

The penguins on the screen had approached some sort of strange temple. It seemed like it was almost entirely built out of ice, with spires that shot towards the sky. Alice remembered the pictures of European cathedrals she had seen before, but couldn't think of one she had seen that looked like this. It was comparable, she thought, as the sheer size of the structure was enough to take her breath away. She wondered how, with all of the exploration in Antarctica in recent years, they had missed both the Penguin City and this ancient building.

On the screen, the penguins stopped at what appeared to be the front door to the temple. As if they were wasting no time, however, they they proceeded to three large, glass-like columns near the entrance. The blind-eyed leader glanced up at the sun, and signaled the three penguins now holding the columns to rotate them into position. Alice was surprised how easily the columns turned – they looked like they could weigh a thousand tons.

Then the penguins on the screen exchanged high-fives and walked into the temple. The screen grew dark for a little while, but after a few moments the area around the penguin was illuminated by eerie blue light. It was a long corridor made of the same material that Alice had seen from outside. Along its sides were torches that, though previously unlit, had strange blue flame burning on them. It seemed to give off just barely enough light.

"It seems we know what there final destination is, now," said Andrew, who had been watching the screen from over Alice's shoulder.

"Yeah," agreed Alice, "but how in the world did this temple come about? I mean, it looks like it could be made of solid glass. There's no way the penguins could have built that, even if they did build the city."

"If I had to make a guess I would say that this temple is far older than the city," returned the businessman.

"Do you think it was built by some strange ancient penguin architects?" Alice asked, intrigued. The penguins on the screen had begun walking down the long corridor.

"With everything we've seen so far, I wouldn't doubt it in the slightest."

Issac rolled his eyes, "What's this with more penguins buildin' things?"

"None of your business," shooed Alice. She didn't want to get the crazy old man any more involved than he already was. He had already gotten in trouble with the penguins from the city, and she didn't want him to cause any more conflict. The sailor shrugged his shoulders and began whistling a tune from behind his tightly drawn hood.

"My penguin really seems to be working with them now," Alice said after a few moments. Her penguin was now leading the group down the long corridor, turning his head back every few minutes to glance at them.

"Personally, I thought he was going to ditch them as soon as he got off that boat. If he could get away, he'd be able to survive on his own in Antarctica until the other penguins found him with the tracking device," returned Andrew.

"It really seems like he's betraying them," sighed Alice.

Andrew picked up on Alice's brief words of worry, and prepared to accuse her of caring for the penguins she had dreaded so much only a few months ago. Alice glared at him before he could, though, and instead he said, "It would be a terrible event to be betrayed in such a way by someone close to you."

"Yeah," agreed Alice. "I hope that my penguins can work it their differences. I don't know why that tall one would back stab them like this, but I don't know if they can defeat those ugly, evil ones without his help."

"Maybe we can help?" offered Andrew. Alice looked at him, and was surprised to see him smiling. She knew that she was slowly beginning to love her penguins more and more, but she had no idea that he might be the same way. Did the last year of doing nothing but watching those pesky little birds change him, too?

She shook her head at the businessman's confused expression, and then said, "You're right. If we can get to that temple before them or even shortly after them, maybe we can help them deal with those evil penguins. And get their little buddy back, for that matter."

"They're obviously very skilled in combat, though. They took you out without much problem before, remember. And those emperor penguins floored Issac without much problem, even though they were obviously not as skilled as our penguins."

"We're also four times their size. Even if we just flail our arms around, we'll probably do serious enough damage."

Mr. Green turned to his interns. Surprisingly enough, they all had looks of determination on their faces. Alice's heart was warmed slightly at this sight. Had all of these people had come to care for her birds? The answer was unanimous to Mr. Green's question of whether or not they wanted to come. It was good to know, because Alice knew they would need all the help they would get.

Issac looked confused at this gesture, but shrugged.

"Off to the temple. Let's go!" Alice said, determined.

* * *

**~Author's Note**: So here you go. I've got a lot of studying to do over the next few days, so the next chapter won't be out until Thursday. Also, I've written a fairly important Deviant Journal on my plans for this story. If you'd like to read it, search up Cudabear on DeviantArt.

For the sake of simplicity, though, I will sum it up here. Basically, from next Thursday the 23rd to Monday the 5th of March, you can expect a brand new chapter each day. That sets my estimation completion date for this book as the end of March. Exciting, eh?


	44. Separation

**The Speed of Darkness**

**Chapter 44 – Separation**

**IT HADN'T CHANGED A BIT.**

The penguin city had been an entirely different sight. It had gone from a bustling penguin metropolis to a smoldering crater. Upon Skipper's return, it had been rebuilt, like putting a bandage over the wound. It would never be what it once was, but those emperor penguins were trying their hardest to restore it. They had found refuge in the abandoned ruins that was once Manfredi's home, and Skipper saw some good in that. Maybe one day that city would be up to par with what it once was.

As for the temple in front of him, it had handled the passing of the years with much less tragedy. In front of the animals stood a massive structure, looking like it was made entirely out of slick, black glass. It was tall, several stories by human standards, and massive. Skipper couldn't see around the corners from where he now stood. Huge spires shot into the sky, made of the same eerie material that the entire building was created out of.

On top of each spire was a glowing ring. It didn't look like it was made of any material Skipper had ever seen before, and though it was far away, he could tell it was spinning with incredible speed. It also seemed to be giving off light; a warm glow similar to the sun's rays. Around the flat-headed penguin shot tall walls, curving inwards towards the mysterious structure as they climbed towards the sky. Spikes protruded from the top of the walls and pointed towards the glowing rings. The walls themselves were covered with the same, eerie black tile.

The tiles themselves seemed to be made of solid glass. It was like they should be transparent, but they weren't. The obsidian blackness of the tiles seemed to absorb the light from around them, and it gave the entire temple an odd feeling of darkness. It gave the structure a slight feeling of fear; one that might make a small penguin want to avoid it.

The waves of snow that had pounded the surrounding landscape did not seem to have an effect on the structure. Skipper was not sure if it was being melted off or if the tile was merely too slick for it to stick, though. Either way the snow piled up in huge drifts that came just shy of the spiked walls and the spires. They leveled out and then dropped in sharp walls that left the ground most proximal to the strange place bare. It was made out of a dark gray rock; one that Skipper recognized as slate.

The place hadn't changed in the slightest. Skipper was never exactly sure how old the temple was, but he was sure that it was far older than any animal or human being currently alive. Time seemed to have avoided the structure, though. The world had been melded around it over thousands of years, but the temple stood in the same location it always had. There had been no exception in the two years that passed since Skipper last stood in front of the tall, black doors.

Around him, his teammates, Marlene, and Julien stared up at the structure in awe. Skipper and Manfredi were not as wowed, though. They found it easier to breath than the other animals as they approached the structure. They had already seen this before.

"It's incredible," said Private, astonished. He was shielding the mid-day sun from his eyes as he looked up at one of the spinning rings of light.

"I've never seen a building like this before," commented Marlene. "They don't have anything like this in New York."

"Or de Madagascar," added Julien, giving Marlene a smile.  
"We never figured out when it was built or by who. Or what it's made of, for that matter. There's a library inside that Johnson did some research in, but we never got a chance to ask him what he discovered," explained Skipper.

Manfredi nodded. "It looks large from out here, but the tunnels inside are endless. If you don't know where you're going, you could get lost forever."

"_Forever_?" wheezed Rico.

"At least that's what Caspian told us before we ever got here. He told us that he'd be the one to go after _his_ prize. Nobody else was allowed to be in the temple except him."

"And Edgar," added Manfredi.

"Yeah," affirmed Skipper. "I bet Edgar was the one who actually did all of the work of finding that artifact, anyway."

"The tunnels go on forever, but you will always wind up at the Sun in the end. The trick is to not give up along the way," explained the robotic penguin.

"_Nothing keep K'walski,_" blabbered Rico. He began moving towards the doors.

"Yeah, Rico's got the idea," agreed Private. He began following the maniac bird but stopped and said, "Why are the doors already open?"

Skipper glanced at the doors that extended far above them. They were large by human standards, massive by penguin standards. "My best guess is that they just stay open for a while after you open them. Sarge is already here, by the looks of it."

"Right," returned Private. He looked slightly scared at the mention of Sarge, but also glanced worriedly at Manfredi. Skipper wondered if he'd be able to trust anyone after this was all over. That was, if he even survived. He tried to get the thought out of his head. The last thing he needed to worry about right now was one of his own getting killed.

"There is being no sense in standing out here, freezing our booties off!" Julien exclaimed, shivering. "Let us be going!"  
With that the animals walked into the open doors. The first thing Skipper noticed was the extreme rise in temperature. He had forgotten about that fact. For some reason, inside the temple it was very warm. A temperature that might be experienced during a typical New York summer. He knew that it couldn't be coming from the eerie blue torches that lined the walls of the temple. They didn't seem to be giving off any heat. Skipper now recalled the entire interior of the structure being chilled to the core after Sarge had removed the Sun.

For now, however, the heat was enough for the animals to remove their protective layers of clothing. Marlene and Julien stripped themselves of the heavy cloth they had been wrapped in to guard against the biting wind.

"This is much better," commented Marlene as she tossed her clothing to the ground. "I was getting tired of hauling all of that around."

"Yeah, I bet," answered Private as he removed his scarf. Skipper noted his new scar as he did so. It extended from above his left eye and ended on the left side of his head. It was still pink from when Sarge had slashed him, and the feathers on the spot had not regrown yet.

"Be wary," said Manfredi. "This temple seeks to make you comfortable. Like you never want to leave. It is warm, while outside it is cold. At some point you may begin to see visions of food or other amenities from home. If you are not careful, though, the doors will close. And they are nearly impossible to open from this side."

The animals, including Skipper blinked at him. "How do you know that?" he asked.

"Johnson did not get the opportunity to share some of his research with you."

Skipper was confused. "But we stayed here for over a week the first time Sarge stole the sun."

"That was true. After they close on you, it is only possible to exit by removing the sun and carrying it with you. Then, the doors will open and will remain open until the sun is returned. That is why we were able to find shelter here until we returned to Denmark."

It didn't make a whole lot of sense, but Skipper knew the Sun was something of extreme power. If anything was going to have such a twisted temple built over it, the Sun would be it. He turned to the others and said, "Stay sharp, soldiers. We need to get in, stop Sarge, get our boy, and get out."

"How long do you think we'll have?" Marlene asked Manfredi.

"Johnson did not say. He only told me that 'it is enough time to do what is right'."  
"It is giving me the heebi-jeebies," said Julien, rubbing his arms.

"We've got no time to waste. I don't want to have to carry the Sun out when that's what were trying to stop Sarge from doing," continued Skipper.

Private turned back and looked at the doors, then turned to his leader. "Are you sure we can't just go and wait for Sarge, Skippah? We can wait for him at the door and ambush him."

Skipper scowled at him for his cowardly statement. "We don't know what the Sun is capable of, Private. It could make him immortal or something. And we don't know what he'll do to Kowalski when he gets his hands on it."

Private nodded, though slowly. Skipper knew that other than there little trips around the Zoo and a small scuffle where nobody got truly hurt, this was Private' first big endeavor. Skipper couldn't stand the thought of seeing the small bird get hurt again, but knew that they would need all the help they could get.

Rico, on the other hand, was not so timid. He was already far down the pathway and was gesturing for them to catch up. Skipper realized that Manfredi's story had some affect on the muscular bird, but knew that his real goal had nothing to do with helping the cyborg get revenge. Skipper knew his commitment to the team was one that could not be broken. He loved Private, himself, and Kowalski like brothers and knew that he would do anything to save the intellectual bird. The question now was why was the tall bird helping them out so much?

"Kowalski," Skipper mumbled as he thought. He hoped his strategist was unharmed.

"We'll get him back," reassured Marlene from behind him.

"Johnson told me of one other thing that this temple will attempt to do," said Manfredi suddenly. Skipper wasn't sure if he wanted to hear any more horror stories from his ex-teammate, but let him continue. "This place tries to separate friends, break bonds. It attempts to turn long allies against each other."

"_Nothing break us up,"_ wheezed Rico, almost as if he was happy. Skipper knew he was the most confident of any of the animals there.

"Normally I am being happy to fight with you fishy penguins, but not here," responded Julien. Skipper looked in his direction and saw that he was walking at the back of the group, but sticking close to Marlene. Rico had told him about their moment on the dock, and he was aware of their feelings for each other. He wasn't surprised to conclude that Julien had followed them in hopes of protecting Marlene. He, too, saw what happened that day Marlene had gotten out of the zoo. He wondered if Julien would be any help at all when they finally confronted Sarge, or if he would only want to protect Marlene.

Skipper thought for a moment about how all of his team seemed to want different things. Julien wanted to protect Marlene, Marlene wanted to stay alive, Rico wanted to hold them together, Private wanted to avoid Manfredi, Manfredi wanted to get revenge. Skipper wondered for a moment if he was the only one who was interested in saving the world. He shook his head as Marlene spoke,

"If we get in and out fast, maybe this place won't have any affect on us, anyway," she said.

"The effects were immediate upon us entering last. Do you remember, Skipper?" Manfredi wondered.

"Yeah. In the first big opening we came to, big walls rose from the ground and separated Manfredi, Johnson and I. We met up later, but it was a risk we shouldn't have had to take."

The robot nodded in agreement, "This place is not alive, but it is as if it has goals similar to what a person might have. It wants to single out each person from a group, and rope them in. It wants them to betray their comrades and seek the power of the sun themselves. If that doesn't work, it wants to keep them here until they are forced to take the Sun with them."

"We'll just focus on the task at hand," dismissed Skipper. "I don't like ghost stories. Like Marlene said, if we can stop Sarge fast enough, we'll be fine."

Private looked scared. "Do you think we'll turn on each other, Skippah?" he mumbled, glancing towards Manfredi. Skipper knew his fears were well placed; Manfredi's mind was feeble already. Being put to this kind of a test was not good. He knew that Manfredi held some sort of connection to him, though, and the robot-bird would remain sane as long as Skipper was around. The leader thought it was some sort of nostalgia that soothed the grieving beast within him, and was glad that Manfredi would still be able to help them. He definitely hoped they would not be separated, however.

"Not a chance in the world," he attempted to reaffirm the small bird, but he still looked frightened by all of Manfredi's lore.

"_Let's go,_" Rico urged. He, again, had put several hundred feet between himself and the rest of the group. They began to catch up. It wasn't until Skipper got closer that the dim, blue light revealed Rico to be in a large clearing. Suddenly, Skipper began running.

"Rico, watch out!" he called. Rico's head whipped back and forth, and then he gave a confused shrug. Skipper recognized the room, though. It was where Manfredi, himself, and Johnson had been separated upon first entering the temple.

"Get out of there before the walls pop up," he commanded. Rico still looked confused, but began to make his way back to the others. What happened next caught all of them off guard. Rather than large walls emerging from seemingly nowhere, the floor dropped out. Rico's face expression changed from one of confusion to one of horror as he realized there was no solid ground beneath his webbed feet, and kicked wildly before slamming onto the hard tile a short ways underneath him.

He was at the top of a very long slope that lead down into blackness. He was slipping fast, and though he struggled to find a handhold, the tile was as smooth as glass. Quickly, he coughed up one of the hammers he had swallowed from earlier and embedded the toothed end into the glass. It stuck, and he held on for dear life.

Skipper was already digging in the pack for the short length of rope they had also found. He whipped it out and dropped it down to the scarred bird.

"We need more rope," he said as the rope ended a few feet out of Rico's reach. Rico looked terrified as he tried to hoist himself up to the end of the life-saving string.

"That's all we have!" exclaimed Marlene, digging through the pack. She threw some of the items wildly, and they landed close to the edge of the slope. One of the items was Manfredi's crooked dagger, but Skipper paid no attention to it. His brain was racing, attempting to find a way to get Rico to safety before the hammer ultimately slipped under the bird's weight.

"Grab onto my feet," Skipper instructed, laying on his belly at the top of the slope. He felt a cold flipper grab his left foot, but nothing grabbed his right. He spun around and saw Manfredi at the ready, but the other animals looked confused at him. "I said grab onto my feet," he commanded again. This time Private stepped forward and grabbed Skipper's right foot. The leader-penguin continued to instruct them, "Hold on tight and lower me over the edge, then pull me up when I say so."

Feeling the penguin's grips tighten on his feet, he pushed himself over the edge. The feeling of being on the slope was disorientating, but he managed to keep his bearings as he looked down at his struggling teammate.

"Just a few more inches," he called.

"That's as far as I can reach without falling over myself," called back Private.

"Damn it!" cursed Skipper. "Julien, grab my foot from Private! You've got longer arms."

There was some shuffling from behind him, and he heard Julien move closer to the edge of the steep slope. To his left he saw a glint and heard a clatter; Julien had knocked Manfredi's crooked dagger off the ledge. It tumbled into the blackness, disappearing from sight entirely.

"No!" cried Manfredi suddenly, and he let go of Skipper's foot.

"Manfredi!" shouted Private as the sudden extra strain began pulling them down the slope further. "Marlene, help!"

Skipper couldn't see but heard grunts from behind him and felt himself stop sliding down the slope momentarily. Suddenly, he saw Manfredi slide down the slope to his left. His face was locked onto the blackness as he careened down the glass expertly. He was going after the knife!

The leader-penguin suddenly felt himself being pulled further down the slope. Rico had let go of the hammer and was now holding onto the end of the rope. His added wait was more than they could handle, though, and they were beginning to slide down the slope themselves!

"Pull, now!" called Skipper, but it was too late. Marlene and Julien slipped and they tumbled down the slope. Rico cried out as they all attempted to stop themselves. It was to no avail; Skipper could have sworn the glassy surface was pure ice. He flipped around and instead focused on steering himself down the slope.

"Watch out!" cried Marlene. Skipper saw the obstacle, too. It was a large beam that protruded from the sloped side of the chute, extending to the opposite wall of the hole. From what Skipper could tell, it was made of the same, glassy material that the slope was and it came to a very sharp point at the top. Enough to impale them if they hit at this velocity.

Thinking quickly, he pushed the closest bodies away from him and in doing so, moved himself away from the hazard. He watched as Private and Marlene slid down the opposite side of the obstacle than He, Rico, and Julien did. A wall came between the two groups and the others disappeared from sight entirely.

"Marlene!" cried Julien shortly before contacting with the ground hard. Skipper slammed the ground next. He bounced several feet before coming to a rest, his head spinning. Rico came next, and Skipper had to roll to avoid being smashed by his comrade's weight.

"Marlene, where are you!" Julien cried again, attempting to climb back up the steep slope. He looked terrified and worried as he clawed hopelessly at the glass.

Skipper hopped up and grabbed the lemur by his shoulders. A quick slap across his snout and he calmed down, instantly.

"She's okay, man!" he said. "Don't go crazy over her now. She's with Private, and they went down the same hole that Manfredi fell down."

"I am guessing so," he mumbled, pulling himself away from the leader.

"They probably wound up in a place just like us," Skipper continued, gesturing to the room around him. It didn't look familiar.

"_Where are _we?" wheezed Rico.

* * *

**~Author's Note:** So it begins. Here's day 1 of an 11 day writing marathon. Hope these chapters don't seem rushed...


	45. Qualm

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 45 – Qualm**

** HE HIT THE WATER HARD**.

He wasn't moving fast enough to do any serious, physical damage to his body, but it still hurt. His skin stung where it had slapped the water, but he tried to ignore it. He immediately dove down into the depths, after the object that had made him jump off the ledge in the first place. Quickly the dim light faded from his view and he was let only with the red glow of his mechanical eye to illuminate the floor of the pool of water.

It didn't take long for a glint of the steel to catch his eye. He snatched the handle of the dagger up into his flipper and then emerged from the surface of the water. He saw Private and Marlene pulling themselves out of the pool. Marlene shook her fur dry and Private rubbed some of the water out of his eyes. They looked shaken, but not hurt.

"What did you do that for, Manfredi!" Marlene called suddenly upon noticing the robotic penguin swimming to the edge of the pool. "We could have all been killed!"

Manfredi did not respond. Rather he looked down at his prize and wondered if it was worth it. He had let go of Skipper—his teammate—in exchange for preserving his weapon. He didn't like the idea of Skipper getting hurt, but he didn't like the idea of loosing the knife even more. Skipper was his ex-teammate, yes. Skipper hadn't been around the last two years, though. They had grown distant, whereas Manfredi had grown closer to the knife. It had been the only thing to keep him company during his search for Sarge. He didn't want to say that he cared for inanimate object like he would a brother, but it was the knife that had taken Johnson's life. It couldn't be lost before it took one more.

"Hello, can you hear me?" asked Marlene. She looked mad; madder than Manfredi was expecting. His jump had not been without thought; he knew his new allies would be mad. It was something he had to do, though.

"I am aware of the risks involved in my decisions," he answered. Just that easily, Marlene's look of anger faded. Manfredi tilted his head in curiosity, wondering what she was thinking about. Private wasn't so swayed.

"If you were so 'aware of the risks' you bloody well shouldn't have done it!" he spat, his flippers balled into tight fists. Manfredi turned to him, and a brief wave of fear rolled over his face. It vanished as he lowered his brow, water dripping from his beak.

"Sometimes risks are required to accomplish things," Manfredi explained, calmly. He was determined to not let Private get under his feathers again. He didn't want to snap and possibly hurt the small bird like had only a few days ago in the open of of Antarctica.

"Accomplish what, exactly? Go after some stupid kitchen knife?" Private complained, his beak turned into a deep frown.

"You witnessed this dagger end Johnson's life. It means much more to me than a common kitchen knife. It was worth the risk," explained Manfredi, but Private did not look satisfied by his statement.

"I guess you really are going to let us die to get what you want," he shot.

"There risks involved in everything we do," Manfredi said.

"Maybe so," answered Private, though he seemed to be calming down, "but there are some risks that are too great to take. One of those things are my friend's lives."

Manfredi was dumbfounded at the little bird's commitment. He was timid, small, and not intimidating, but he stood up for what he thought was right. Manfredi couldn't help but respect that. Johnson had been the exact same way.

"I..." he said, slowly, "I am sorry."

Private looked confused suddenly, like he hadn't been expecting that response. He lowered his flippers and relaxed a little. "Is'alright," he said, "Maybe we were supposed to slide down that hole, anyway. I mean, this water was pretty conveniently placed."

"Yeah, but it would be nice to be together. I wonder if Julien and the others are okay," she said.

"I certainly hope so," Private said, "but standing around here isn't going to help us find them again. Manfredi, you said you were able to meet up with Skipper and Johnson after being separated before, right?"

"That is true. The tunnels have a way of meeting up again at some point before the Sun. If we continue down this path, we should eventually cross paths with the others," Manfredi confirmed.

"It's settled, then. Like Skipper said, if we keep our cool we'll eventually get there," nodded Marlene.

With that, the three of them began walking down the corridor in front of them. The corridor here was made of the same black glass tiles and was lined with the same eerie blue torches. In the passageway this time, however, were several arches. They extended from the floor, followed the walls, and met overhead. Between each pair of arches was an odd, wooden door. It was person-sized, and was complete with a black latch.

"Where to the doors go, Manfredi?" Marlene asked.

"Johnson never really said. All I know is that somewhere, one of them leads to a library that contains all of the information about this place. We did not try many when we ventured these tunnels for the first time. It was much easier to stay on the main path."

"I wonder if that's where the illusions you were talking about are," Marlene wondered. "The ones that make you want to stay here forever. Food, and stuff."

"It is possible," pondered Manfredi.

Marlene broke off from the trio and tried one of the doors. It creaked open, and though it was dark inside, Manfredi could still make out a tiny, dark room. There was only a tiny light inside and the walls of it seemed to made of red brick.

Marlene scratched her head in thought. "That's weird," she said. "This place is made entirely of tile except for this one room. I wonder what it could be used for."

"If your theory is correct," said Manfredi, "it's showing you what makes you most comfortable."

"That doesn't make any sense," wondered the Asian otter. "Its kinda looks like the my habitat back at the zoo, but that's the last place I want to be. All I wanted to was to get out of there and go on an adventure. I mean, I got that now, but... I don't know."

"Perhaps you became so accustomed to your surroundings at the zoo that it has become your place of greatest comfort?"  
"Maybe you're right. I've never been as frightened as I've gotten on this whole trip. I mean, attacking that lady means that I might get put to sleep when we get back. Then, I almost got sliced open by that rock hopper guy. I actually wouldn't mind being safe and sound in my exhibit again. We shouldn't worry about this right now, though. We've got to find Skipper."  
"Let's go," said Private, who was already walking down the corridor.

As Marlene trotted away from the mysterious room, Manfredi witnessed a strange figure peak his head around the corner. It was a semi-translucent lemur, one that Manfredi was sure he had seen before. It glanced at Marlene walking away before lowering its head and walking back into the room. The door then slowly closed itself. Manfredi wondered if the room had actually been showing Marlene what she wanted, as he was sure that had been a representation of Julien.

It phased him not, though, and he caught up to the other two. He knew that they did not need to waste times looking in the rooms right now as Skipper was probably already making progress towards the Sun. They needed to meet up somewhere.

When he approached Marlene again he asked, "Why did your anger fade earlier when I mentioned risks?"

Marlene turned to the robotic penguin, her face showing surprise. "What you said made me think," she responded after a few moments.

Seeing Manfredi's interested expression, she continued. "You know that I have a trouble when I get into open areas, like leaving the zoo, right? Well, to be honest, after I went insane in front of Skipper and the others on our first trip out of the zoo, I never really left again. I got so sick and tired of only being in my habitat and in the zoo that all I wanted was to leave and go on adventure. I hardly considered the risks that might be involved with that."  
Manfredi nodded. Though the otter didn't understand why, he understood. "You know, I felt the same way at one point."

"Really?" she wondered.

"Yes. Years ago, I was tired of being in the penguin city. It was safe, but it was boring. That is what caused me to join the Penguin Army when my target came to my town to recruit. I wanted to go out and experience the world. I wanted some sort of adventure, just like you."

Marlene blinked, enveloped my Manfredi's words. The robotic penguin wondered if she was surprised that there was such a similarity between the two of them. He continued speaking.

"I did not think about the risks that were involved. I did not think that there would be a chance that the army I was joining might attack my very hometown. I hardly even thought about my unhatched child. I merely assumed I would be back before it came into the world, but I was mistaken."

"So you enlisted," said Marlene.

"Yes. I regret it every day. Maybe if I never would have joined up with my target, nothing bad would have ever happened. That is something you should keep in mind when you make life changing decisions."

"All I wanted was to go on adventure," responded the otter. "I never thought that it would result in me attacking that lady. Or getting my head cut off. Worse could have happened, I suppose."

"Think about where you would be today if you wouldn't have came after us," said the cyborg.

"I would probably be in my habitat worried for your guys. Or regretting not coming with."

"And where would we be?"  
"Private would probably be... dead...if I wouldn't have shown up on the dock when I did," she realized.

"So you see, maybe you did make the right decision by coming out. You also lured your lemur friend to come after you, and he has proven to be a great ally in the past. Without you two, maybe we would have never came this far."

"You could be right," Marlene responded, "or maybe you guys would have rescued Kowalski on the dock and none of this stuff would even be happening."

"_What could have been_," Manfredi stated, "is a phrase I have been struggling with since the deaths of everyone near to me. I cannot say for sure what would have wound up if your decisions had been different, but they cannot be changed now."

Marlene looked disgruntled for a moment. "That's an interesting phrase to hear out of you."

"Why is that?" Manfredi asked.

"Its like you're telling me to accept what I've chosen to do, regardless of how the results came out. You refuse to accept what has happened as a result of your decisions, though."

"Perhaps you are correct," affirmed the robotic penguin. He looked at the dagger in his flipper, twisting it in the dim light. "However, my decisions have resulted in the deaths of everyone close to me. I have ignored all signs that the risks were too great, and made the wrong choices."

"Maybe you didn't," offered Marlene suddenly. "You just said if I hadn't have left the zoo, Private might not be with us today. Maybe you made the right choice, too."

Manfredi was not sure where the otter was taking him with her words, but he found peace in them anyway. He felt as though this was a conversation he should have found someone to have with a long time ago, like it would have helped him keep his thoughts straight. Maybe then those nightmares would not have plagued him, the visions in the night, the brief lapses of insanity.

"You joined the Penguin Army looking for adventure. Sarge was going after the Sun regardless of if you joined or not. He was going to eventually come and plow through the Penguin City. At least by joining you were aware of his plans and did everything in your power to stop it from happening."

Suddenly, the hope Manfredi had thought he found in Marlene's words was taken away. She was wrong. His choices had been the direct cause of his loved ones' deaths. "My target did not know about the Penguin City until I told him. When I found out about his plans, I had no choice but to rebel. By rebelling, I made him hate me. With his hatred in me and his knowledge of my home, his choice was obvious."

Marlene's previous confidence had been wiped by Manfredi's conclusion. It was like there was no hope in the robot's words and they both new it. Manfredi knew his decisions had been poor, poor enough to cost him the lives of his loved ones.

"Well..." the otter stuttered, attempting to find some semblance of hope for Manfredi. Manfredi was finished talking about his choices, though, and waved a dismissive flipper.

"The last thing I need to do is end my target's life. Maybe that will pay for my bad choices."

Marlene opened her mouth to say something more, but was interrupted by Private. Manfredi had almost entirely forgotten about the small bird in front of them.

"Quiet," he shushed, "I can hear something."

They stopped walking to quiet their footsteps and Manfredi strained his ears to hear any sort of tiny noise. It was very quiet, almost silent in the temple, but only the near non-existent sound of the air moving around him met his ears. It wasn't for a few more seconds that something else greeted him.

"How can something so small contain the energy to fuel an entire military base of operations?" the voice said. It seemed very far away, and Manfredi didn't recognize it.

"Kowalski!" Private and Marlene exclaimed at the exact same time.

* * *

**~Author's Note: **Day 2. This chapter was more difficult to write than the last, probably because there was far less action! Either way, check back tomorrow night for more!


	46. Chicanery

**The Speed of Darkness**

**Chapter 46 - Chicanery**

**DARKNESS.**

The area the three of them stood in currently was lit well enough to see quite a bit down the passageway in front of them, but there was also a strange darkness about it. It was not because of a lack of light, but rather because of a relative feeling that air held. Skipper knew that feelings such as these were not generated by one's physical surroundings. Rather, it was something that was experienced at the personal level; Julien and Rico may not be experiencing the same thing.

"_Where r'we?_" The large bird asked the darkness. His voice cracked slightly with a hint of fear as he rubbed where he had hit at the end of his fall. Skipper stood next to him, looking down the long tunnel in front of them. It was lined with the same blue torches he had become familiar with, but had arches that extended towards the ceiling. Behind him the steep, slippery slope ended with the hard ground they had landed on.

"This looks just like it did when Manfredi, Johnson, and I got separated the last time we were here. This tunnels we were dropped in before all met up at some point down the main passage. The trick was to not get distracted by the doors on the side. I'm sure if we just keep moving down this way, we will meet up with the others," Skipper explained, pointing his flipper.

Rico began sliding ahead on his belly, putting some distance between himself and the others. "Rico," called the leader-penguin. The large penguin stood up and turned around. "Stick close this time. We can't afford another incident like what just happened."

"_Sorry,_" he wheezed, letting his captain and the lemur catch up.

"Would it not be faster to just be using one of de doors?" Julien asked suddenly. "De others are just on the other side of dis wall. One of de doors could go through."

"Those doors," said Skipper. "Nothing good ever came out of those doors the last time we were here. We need to stay on the main path."

"We can at least be trying de doors. If one of dem must be leading us to Marlene and de others," insisted Julien as he made his way for one of the latches.

Skipper jumped forward and grabbed his arm, stopping him in his tracks. "I'm telling you ringtail, those doors mess with your head. You'd be smart not to open one."

"I am not to be believing you silly penguin. Dis must be a faster way," he said, pulling his arm away from Skipper.

"Ringtail!" Skipper shouted suddenly, making Julien freeze again. He turned back around, bewildered as Skipper's voice echoed around them. "You're part of my team now, so you will listen to my orders. Do _not_ open one of those doors."

Julien scratched his head, curious. Skipper knew the self-proclaimed king would not be quick to accept being denounced as an inferior and accept orders. He was used to being on top; giving the orders rather then obeying them. He only worked for what he really wanted, and nothing else. The flat-headed penguin knew that the mammal would need to learn to obey orders, or at the very least follow directions, if he was going to survive. Acting only on his selfish wants was not going to get him very far against Sarge.

"What could be happening," the lemur dismissed, turning back around and walking towards the door. Skipper crossed his flippers. He knew the lemur would rebel against him. There wasn't much he could do about it now, though. Fighting against his ego wasn't going to get them any farther than letting him just open the door.

"Let us see if door number one is being the lucky choice," he mumbled as he grabbed the latch on the tall door and yanked it open. He gasped as he saw what laid behind it. It was a jungle, or rather, a tiny piece of jungle. A tall trunk extended from the center of the tiny room that was behind the door and it shot towards the ceiling. Vines with flowers crawled up its bark and a variety of ferns grew around its base. Rico gasped, but Skipper was not impressed. He knew strange things existed behind the doors in this hallway.

"It looks like de Madagascar," Julien said, jumping with excitement. "But what is it doing in a place like this?"

"_The temple's playin' tricks,"_ Rico blabbered, his surprise now replaced with fear. He didn't look like he wanted to mess with whatever magic Skipper also knew was conjuring the image.

"It is not making a lot of sense why der would be a jungle room here, but de King thinks it is a good addition, no?" Julien said smiling.

"Stop being so naive, Julien," Skipper called. "So its a room with a tree. Big deal. Let's get going before we miss our chance to meet up with the others."

"It is being so beautiful, though," Julien said, his face beaming. "I want to see it up closer."

As the ring-tail lemur stepped closer, a strange ghostly fog began creeping out of the room. It traveled along the floor, but to Skipper it didn't seem to be particularly cold nor moist. It wrapped around Julien, covering his feet as he shuffled.

The next thing took Skipper's breath away. Several translucent lemurs, not unlike Julien, stepped out of the room. The ghostly fog swirled behind them, and they moved towards Julien. The lemur-king looked surprised at first, but smiled when they came close to him. The figures ran their long fingers over his fur and caressed his face.

Skipper decided it was time to act. Johnson had been right, his knowledge relayed through Manfredi; this place was designed to make you want to stay. The leader penguin wasn't sure if something supernatural was going on or if it was just some sort of technology that was making these hallucinations, but he knew Julien was getting roped into the room. The penguin propelled himself forward on his belly, parting the eerie fog as he did so.

The lemurs near Julien had produced a ghostly, non-existent crown and were attempting to put it on the lemur's head. Skipper dove for the lemur, but cried in surprise when Julien dodged his attempt to tackle him.

"Silly penguin," Julien laughed. "You are seeing that there is nothing bad here. These strange Antarctic-an lemurs merely want to worship their new found leader."

"You're out of your mind, Julien," Skipper returned, recovering from his missed attempt at tackling the lanky lemur.

"Nonsense. You see, dey have been trapped here for many moon-cycles, and have been waiting for the arrival of a king suitable to guide them"

"_Nu-uh,_" urged Rico who had followed Skipper. The large penguin lunged at Julien with far more success than Skipper had experienced. The two of them tumbled to the ground, rolling several feet. Julien's mysterious ghost crown bounced several feet away from him.

"What are you doing? Get off of me you crazy penguin!" Julien cried, trying to force Rico off of him without success. The ghostly fog that was coming from the room, and the ghost-lemurs began to walk slowly back into the jungle room. Their faces were downcast.

"No, where are you going?" Julien cried, his face twisted with anger at Rico. Rico diligently held him down even though he was flailing wildly. The lemurs disappeared back into their room and Skipper slammed the door shut.

"They only wanted to be adopting me as der king!" Julien insisted. Rico let him up finally, and he immediately moved towards the door. Skipper stopped him short, though. He cocked his flipper back and gave the lemur the hardest slap he could muster. The lemur king was dazed, holding the side of his face.

"Don't you see what's going on here?" Skipper asked him, shaking his shoulders. "Manfredi was right. This place _is_ trying to make you stay forever."

"But those lemurs..." Julien whimpered.

"They weren't real!" Skipper exclaimed. "It was some sort of strange hallucination. Something's playing a trick on you!"

Julien didn't respond, but rather looked back at Skipper with confusion. It was like he wanted to believe the lemurs were real; wanted to believe there were Madagascan lemurs that wanted to worship him as a king. Skipper knew Julien was smarter than that, though. He knew they hadn't been real. Their ghostly figures had shown that.

"Think about it," Skipper continued. "What would Marlene think about that room?"

"She..." Julien stuttered, then averted his eyes to the ground. "She would know it was not being real."

"Exactly," Skipper concluded, giving the lemur one last shake and then letting go of him. The lemur looked drained now. A few moments of silence passed between the trio before Julien spoke again.

"Marlene would be thinking I was stupid for believing dose were real."

"_Nu-uh_," Rico said, shaking his head. "_She not think you're stupid_."

Julien looked up at the buff penguin, his eyes wide. He didn't look like he was going to cry, but rather like he was defeated. His pride was hurt.

"You are thinking so?" Julien asked.

Rico walked over and clapped the lemur on the back. "_She think you're smart._"

Julien smiled, but then looked thoughtfully back at Skipper, then said, "Dat was a stupid move on my part..."

"Next time when I give you an order, I want you to obey it. Is that clear, soldier?" Skipper asked.

Julien merely nodded. It didn't resonate with the confidence that Skipper wanted to hear from the lemur, but he knew that was good enough. Getting Julien to listen to him was all he really needed right now. He needed everyone to be in their best state of mind.

"This place is really being creepy," Julien said, shivering. "We should be moving."

Skipper and Rico exchanged a glance, but then nodded in agreement. The three of them finally began walking down the tunnel. Skipper hoped they would meet up with Manfredi and the others before they happened to cross paths with Sarge. He didn't want to attempt to take on him and his henchmen with Rico as his only real ally. He knew Julien would try his best, but he wasn't expecting the lemur to do much.

"Hey, Skipper," Julien said suddenly, breaking the leader from his thought. He turned to look at the tall lemur as the continued moving down the hallway. "Are you thinking Marlene is okay? I hope she's okay."

Skipper couldn't help but smile at Julien's sudden sign of compassion. He had never seen anything but selfishness out of the lemur-king before, and this was a welcome change. He was in love with the otter, that much Skipper knew. He didn't realize that would actually bring about this change, though. Skipper had wondered before if Julien would ever be worried for anyone other than himself.

"Like I said before, she's fine. She's with Manfredi and Private. I know they won't let anything happen to her. Besides, after all that training with Rico and Private she seems pretty able to defend herself."

Julien clenched and unclenched his fists. Skipper wondered if he was thinking about the quick, two-week training session he had also endured. He said, softly, "I don't know if she can be fighting. She seems like she might be too scared."

"Marlene?" wondered Skipper. "No way. She's as brave as any of us. She came onto the dock to save Private, didn't she?"

"Yeah, but I am wondering about when she gets scared. Every time I have been seeing her grow scared, she freezes up. The first time dat evil fishy-penguin attacked her in her habitat, she didn't run or fight back or anything."

Skipper looked curiously at the lemur, wondering if he was onto something. When she felt free, Skipper knew Marlene was a force to be reckoned with. That time she had gone completely insane in the park had been a clear example of that; even he had been defeated by her. Was fear the controlling force that kept her from attacking everyone?

"That might be true," said Skipper. "And if she did attack that human lady when she left the zoo after us, it was probably because she was not afraid at the time. She let her confidence get the best of her."

"Confidence is seeming like something dat she needs, though," countered Julien.

"You're right. She can't do it when she's afraid, and if she isn't afraid, she'll go bonkers. Maybe she needs something extra to help keep her in line. Something like a sort of regulator to make sure she doesn't loose it?" Skipper wondered.

"Something like me?"

"Maybe. Just rest assured, we'll find her soon enough. I just hope we find her before Sarge does.

"_Me too_," whimpered Rico.

* * *

**~Author's Note: **Day 3 of 11. Going strong so far. This was an interesting chapter I feel. I think Julien is one of my favorite characters. He's so stuck-up and conceited in his comfort zone but can really break down when forced outside of it. Ah, well. Check back tomorrow.


	47. Treason

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 47 – Treason**

Skipper's log. 13:00 Hours on September the 18th.

_"What can I say? We failed. It's hard for me to confess, even now, but its the truth._

_ "We left the Penguin City as fast as we could and found our way straight to this mysterious temple. This ancient building apparently at one point housed the Sun, but Sarge has successfully taken it back to Denmark. Manfredi apparently didn't know this structure existed, even though he lived only a few miles from it for most of his life. He was just as surprised when we first got here as Johnson and I were._

_ "We thought there would be great resistance when we first arrived. We didn't know about the temple, but we thought for sure no matter what the Sun actually was or where it was being held, we would have to fight our way through the Penguin Army. I had thought our best scenario would be to move through during the night and attempt to sneak by with as little fighting as possible. Even then I thought there would be bloodshed, but there was none. _

_ "The Penguin Army wasn't here when we got here. In fact, the snow outside of the temple didn't look like it had been disturbed by thousands of penguins, either. If anything, Manfredi and I could only find evidence of two penguins entering and exiting the temple, but we were sure there would be many more than that._

_ "It makes me think of whether or not the Sargent actually brought his army with him to the temple, or if he sent them straight back to his boat immediately after destroying the Penguin City. I haven't told Manfredi about it yet, though. He probably doesn't need to know that Sarge may only have brought his army along to destroy the city, and not to retrieve the sun._

_ "Either way, we were too late. Far too late, by the looks of it. It didn't seem like Caspian had been present for several hours when we arrived. There was snow tracked into the temple, and footprints leading away. I was confident we were going to catch up to him in time, but I guess we lost more time that we had thought on that stupid research vessel. _

_ "Which, by the way, isn't leaving anytime soon. Those scientists found the decimated Penguin City, so they set up a base camp and are doing some research or something now Johnson says it'll probably be a week or two before they leave, so we have a lot of time to burn before we get off this island. _

_ "Johnson doesn't seem to mind that fact, though. He located some sort of library inside of the temple, and he's been studying the books there. He says they are written in some weird code or something, but he can translate it fairly easily. The kid's a freaking genius, that's for sure. Maybe he can shed some light onto what the Sun is and why its giving Sarge the power to take over the world._

_ "There's only one thing I know for sure right now. That's that we need to find our way back to Denmark and steal the Sun back. Strange things happened around here in the last few days. I'm not sure if they are related to the Sun, but I have a hunch. Johnson may be able to shed some light onto whats going on, but it seems like the Sun hasn't moved at all since we got to the Temple. It just stays in the same point on the sky the entire time, low on the horizon. It's kind of freaky, really. Add that to the earthquake that rocked this place about twenty four hours ago and I'm not sure what to think._

_ "The Sun must be connected to what is going on, though. That's the only conclusion I can make. We need to get it back ASAP. Manfredi doesn't seem to like that notion, though. The last time I saw him he was sitting in the corner of the library, sulking. I'm sure he hasn't moved yet. I'll have to try to convince him that there is still worth fighting for, still a chance for us to stop Fishslader._

_ "I've already told him that once, though. I'm not sure how he'll react to hearing it again."_

* * *

"I'd recognize that voice anywhere," Private said excitedly. "That's K'walski for sure!"

"I know, I know," Marlene responded, tapping her chin thoughtfully, "but where the heck is he?"

"Let's listen," Private said as they fell silent once more. Marlene cupped her hands behind her ears to and strained to hear Kowalski's voice again.

"The power required to operate a base of that size doesn't seem..." The tall bird's voice came and went with the echo of the tunnels around them. It made it impossible for Marlene to determine a direction of origin, but she knew that he was close. He was either behind them, near the sloped wall, or in front of them. Through process of elimination the Asian otter was pretty sure she knew which way to go.

"K'walski!" called Private, cupping his flippers to amplify his voice. He turned back around to Marlene, looking excitedly. "C'mon, let's go!"

Marlene nodded. She too was excited to hear Kowalski's voice. It was good to know he was safe. The only question she had now was, who was he talking to? It didn't matter, though. What was important was that they found him as quickly as possible.

The otter briefly turned to look at Manfredi, who was clutching the dagger tightly. He didn't speak as he stared back at her and merely had a grim look on his face. She wondered if he knew something she didn't, but was afraid to ask.

Private, at this point had begun calling out Kowalski's name ever few seconds and waddling very fast. Marlene had to jog to keep up with the small bird's speed, but was glad they would see Kowalski soon.

"Private?" Kowalski's voice finally responded. Marlene's heart jumped when she realized he could hear them and he was very close. It sounded like it was coming from just down the hallway, just passed the range of vision the dim blue light was giving her.

"Kowalski, where are you?" Private called back, looking all around him. The echo made it hard to determine where anything was based on merely the origin of sound waves, but Marlene thought they would eventually be able to find him if they kept talking long enough.

"I am here. Where are you?" responded Kowalski. He was no longer shouting but was still very audible, and Marlene knew he was right under there noses. She couldn't see him anywhere, however. Suddenly her eyes fell on a open door. It looked like one of the doors that lead to the small, mysterious rooms. Had Kowalski opened it?

"Over here guys," she gestured, running to the door. Private jumped in front of her as they peered into the room. It was mostly empty but considerably larger than the other room she had opened. It was made of the black tile and had more blue torches, though four tall pillars in the room cast long shadows on the walls. It was eerie, but Marlene was more concerned with the tall penguin standing on the opposite side of it.

"K'walski!" exclaimed Private elatedly as he raced up to the intellectual, wrapping his flippers around him in a big hug. Kowalski looked surprised by this, but gently hugged the smaller bird back. Marlene raced up to the two penguins and pulled them both into her own hug, nearly knocking the three of them over. She laughed for a moment, but then regained her composure.

"It's great to see you're okay," Marlene said, smiling. It was true, Kowalski looked like he was in great shape. His feathers weren't ruffled and he didn't look like he had been starving. In fact, Marlene was sure he looked better than Private, herself, or any of the others for that matter.

"It's great to see you, too," the bird responded, smiling. His eyes drifted behind Marlene and he suddenly looked a little frightened. Marlene turned around and saw Manfredi in the doorway to the room, holding his knife.

"Uh, isn't that..." Kowalski began.

"The penguin that attacked Skippah, yes," Private explained. "He's working with us now. Dun worry, I'll fill in all of the details later. We got separated from Skippah and the others so now we're trying to find them."

Kowalski continued to look uneasily at Manfredi for a moment. Marlene thought he was deep in thought about something for a moment, but then he redirected his attention towards her. "I'm not sure what you're doing here, Marlene," he said, "but as with Manfredi I'm sure these things will be revealed in due time. Let's get going."

"Wait, how do you know Manfredi's name?" Marlene asked suddenly. Kowalski paused for a moment and some uneasiness flashed over his eyes.

"I was held captive by his primary enemies for the past two weeks. I overheard much of their conversations."

"Yeah, Marlene," affirmed Private, beaming. "Let's go. I'll tell you as much as I can about what's been happening as we walk."

Kowalski nodded and they moved to exit the room. Manfredi stepped out of the way and they emerged back into the large hallway. Manfredi still held the same, grim expression on his face as he glanced at Manfredi. Kowalski met his glance awkwardly, but then offered his flipper for a handshake.

"Nice to meet you Manfredi," Kowalski greeted. "I'm Kowalski."

Manfredi was hesitant. Marlene wondered if all their talk about Kowalski's possible betrayal had had too great of an affect on the robot-penguin. Did he really think Kowalski betrayed them, or was going to? Marlene wished she could say something to help the bird be more trusting, but she couldn't find the words to express it. Eventually the bird grabbed Kowalski's flipper. Marlene was not expecting what happened next.

In a flash, Kowalski wrenched Manfredi's flipper, pulling it closer towards him. Then, with a grunt, he ripped Manfredi's crooked dagger out of his other flipper. Manfredi gasped with the surprise of being caught off guard as Kowalski threw his flipper away again, spinning it around. The tall bird the launched the dagger into the room they had just emerged from.

"Kowalski, what?" was all Marlene could manage. Manfredi looked enraged as he looked up at Kowalski. His flippers were balled into fists as he approached the tall penguin. Kowalski suddenly looked afraid, regretting what he had just done. Marlene couldn't understand why he had disarmed Manfredi like that.

"Stop it!" Private cried, stepping between the two birds before they really hurt each other. "I don't know why you did that Kowalski, but we can't fight each other here. We need to work together!"

"Right," Kowalski said, though slightly shakily. "It was just that knife... and I noticed your new scar."

"Manfredi didn't do this to me," Private said, rubbing a flipper along the symbol of his near-death experience. "It's not important right now, though. We really have to find Skipper.

Manfredi merely grunted, but he still looked angry at Kowalski. Kowalski was intimidated by this, but stood his ground with Private in between the two birds.

"It's okay, Manfredi," insisted Marlene. "Kowalski doesn't know what's going on."

Manfredi nodded slowly, then turned away from the intellectual. He proceeded back into the room to retrieve his dagger. Moments later, three shadows moved from behind a nearby arch. Marlene gasped with shock as they ran passed her, slamming the door shut. Before she could make out who they were they had already locked the door, sliding some sort of metal tubing between it and the door frame to prevent it from being opened from the inside.

"That should hold him," said a dark, familiar penguin."

Marlene couldn't help but scream as she finally got a good look at the three birds in front of her. There was a rock-hopper holding a rifle, a flat-headed, blind-eyed leader, and a large penguin. Gier, Sarge, and Thurgo. Not sure of what else to do, she got into the fighting stance that she had learned from Private and Rico and prepared to defend herself. She was surprised when the penguins across from her merely laughed.

"Relax, princess," Thurgo said, his flippers crossed. "We're not here to hurt you."

Marlene exchanged a glance with Private, who was also in a fighting position. He seemed to be shaking slightly. She redirected her attention to Kowalski, who, surprisingly, was smiling. Even though, she didn't lower her fighting stance and her heart rate remained accelerated.

"Great work, Kowalski," came Sarge's dark voice.

"He fell for the bait like a fish," chuckled Kowalski. There was suddenly a loud pounding on the other side of the door. Manfredi had realized he was trapped.

"What? Kowalski? Why are you helping them?" Marlene stuttered. A million possibilities were going through her mind as she spoke. Was he brainwashed? Was he hypnotized? Was he just crazy?

"Its simple, really. Caspian and I made a compromise shortly into our journey here. I agreed to help them reach the Sun if they agreed to not harm any of you."

At Kowalski's explanation, Marlene managed to lower her paws and relax a little bit. Even though, she remained tense and each time she glanced in Gier's direction, she felt a slight ping of pain across her throat, reminding her that he was the one who had almost ended her life.

"So, here we are. Nobody is fighting, so it our agreement is still in effect, right Caspian?" Kowalski continued.

"Of course," smiled the flat-headed penguin, "and Manfredi is locked in a room. That's a huge bonus already."

Kowalski smiled at his deranged friend, but then turned back to Marlene and Private. "So now that the formalities are out of the way and you know the reason behind my rash actions, you will join us, right?"

Marlene's eyes darted between the three enemy penguins in front of her. She couldn't stand the sight of them; they had attacked her twice already. They had very nearly ended Private's life, attacked Alice, and kidnapped her friends. Even though Kowalski was her friend and she wanted to trust him, she couldn't find the reason in just trusting these penguins based on his word only.

"Alright, sounds good," Private said suddenly, stepping forward. His looked just as relaxed as Kowalski now as he stood next to him.

Marlene was blown away. "What?" she said. "Private, you do remember what these guys did to you right?"

"Yeah," said Private, glancing towards the three penguins who were smiling. "I'm not helping them, though. I'm going with Kowalski. That was our whole goal of coming here anyway, right?"

"I guess," the otter returned, blinking, "but what about Manfredi? Are you just going to leave him in that room?" she said, gesturing to the door that was now locked with the metal pipe running through the latch. Manfredi had since ceased his pounding.

"From what I've heard Manfredi is a monster," Kowalski responded quickly.

"I agreed with Kowalski to not kill him, but he will make an attempt on my life. He needs to be restrained until we leave this place." said Sarge. He hadn't stopped smiling. That fact was making Marlene suspicious, but she didn't want to start a huge fight right now.

They needed Skipper and the others before they could try to take on Sarge. The fact that he was working so willingly with Kowalski was actually a blessing. Now was the perfect time for the maniacal penguin to strike the four of them down, but he wasn't even acting like he wanted to. Marlene briefly wondered if he wasn't as bad as Skipper and Manfredi had made him out to be. As soon as she thought that, however, she remembered the knife that had been held against her windpipe. Not sure what to think or what else to do, she relaxed a bit more.

"Alright," she said, finally. "There's nothing much that fighting will solve anyway." She turned to Sarge. She couldn't help the chills that ran down her spine as they made eye contact. "All you want is the Sun?"  
"Exactly," he returned. "Nothing more."  
Marlene nodded. "Alright. I'll come with."

As she spoke she heard a loud bang come from behind Manfredi's locked door. She wondered if the robotic penguin had been listening to their conversation, and was upset at her decision. She didn't want to leave him locked up like that, though. The chances of Skipper finding him were tiny, and she was unsure if they could find him again on the way out.

Besides, Manfredi had only been helpful to her. Their conversations had been friendly. A tiny part inside of her was telling her that she should help Manfredi get his revenge, and it made her look at the leader with some hatred. He arched his brow, and she averted her eyes. She needed to talk to Manfredi once more before they went towards the Sun. The question was, how?

"We got split up on the way in," Private said. "Skippah, Rico, and Julien are probably on their way to the Sun right now, too. We should try to find them on the way and let them know whats going on."

"Ah, Skipper," whispered Sarge. Marlene didn't think anyone but herself heard it, and the penguin's beak twisted into a sinister grin. Her heart rate began accelerating again, but she tried her best to relax.

"That sounds logical," said Kowalski. "We should get moving."

Sarge nodded, and then they began moving down the hallway. Marlene pretended to be following them, but distanced herself from the back of the group a bit. This would be her only chance to help Manfredi. She needed to be careful, though. If Sarge caught her, he might just kill her on the spot. She gulped as she thought about Gier's rifle.

She slipped behind one of the arches when she thought she had a chance. Then, moving quickly, she slipped back to the door that housed Manfredi. She gently slid the pipe out of the latch, and then cracked the door open. Inside, Manfredi was leaning up against one of the pillars, twisting the dagger in his flippers. He jumped up at the sound of the door cracking open, but Marlene waved her paw to stop.

"Don't follow us," she said. "Find Skipper. Tell him what's going on. We'll find you later."

Manfredi didn't look particularly happy about Marlene's idea. He nodded slowly, however. The otter knew there was a chance he would charge out after Sarge the moment she turned around, but she trusted him to do what she said. As gingerly as she had opened it, Marlene closed the door again. She set the pipe down next to it rather than reinserting it into the latch, and then shot down the corridor.

"Wait up," she called, pretending to be out of breath. The penguins turned to look at her as she approached them again.

"I thought I saw something, but it was just my imagination," she lied, trying to play off her few moments of absence. Sarge merely turned back around instead of growing suspicious, and she let out a quiet sigh of relief. Private looked at her.

"Looks like there will be no fighting today after all," he whispered to her.

She wasn't so sure.

* * *

**~Author's Note**: Day 4. Going strong, though I will admit this chapter is out really late in the day. Sorry about that!


	48. Heart

**The Speed of Darkness**

**Chapter 48 – Heart**

** THE INSIDE WAS WARM.**

Alice was glad, though. It had been so cold outside that she swore she had gotten frostbite on the tip of her nose. As soon as they stepped inside the strange temple, though, the cold vanished. It was warm enough for her to take off her jacket, and she did. She tossed it onto the sled that the interns continued to pull, even into the temple itself. She didn't mind though, it had all of their supplies on it. More importantly, it had all the gear she had brought for catching the penguins. Her net gun rested on top of the pile, already loaded and ready to go. She knew it would come in handy.

Her foot stepped on something soft, and she bent over to pick it up. It was several small pieces of cloth. One one she identified brown hairs, and on the other several of a shade of gray. These had been from her otter and her lemur. She already knew they were inside, but the cloth pieces were reassuring that fact.

"This place is incredible," gaped Mr. Green. He clutched one of the monitors in his hands as he looked up at the ceiling. "I mean, it looked impressive enough from the penguin's point of view. Looking at it in person is just unbelievable."

"Yeah," Alice agreed. "This place isn't hard to see from miles away, either. How in the world hasn't this place been discovered, yet?"

"As far as I know, this particular region of Antarctica is plagued with particularly bad wind. Nobody comes here unless they are on specific business. It's a miracle we made it here without any trouble," said Mr. Green, pushing up his glasses and taking off his coat. Alice smiled as she noticed he was still wearing his business suit underneath all of his winter gear.

"Thar be much in this world we don't be knowin' about. This could be Atlantis, or somethin'," Issac said. He was running his hand along the smooth, glass tiles that lined the walls.

Alice shook her head. "It doesn't matter what this place is why it hasn't been found yet. We can report it to whoever the hell cares as soon as we get my animals and get out."

"No time to waste," Mr. Green said. "Just like the first penguin to enter this place, we've lost all signals on the others as well. Its hard to believe that the signal isn't able to transmit through these walls, though; it is very powerful. It seems as though it is being scrambled."

"Scrambled? By what? There's no radar jammers here," scoffed Alice.

"I don't know," Andrew returned, "but it might have to do with those strange energy disks we saw outside. I've never seen anything like them, and they seem like they'd give off the electromagnetic signals capable of throwing off our equipment."

"I have no idea what you just said," Alice said, shaking her head, "but I know its not good."

"We know they are down there somewhere, though. We at least have that," concluded Andrew.

"Alright," Alice began, turning to the interns. "We have no idea how big this place might be, but we know that our penguins are in here somewhere. If we split up and take alternate paths, we may be able to find them a lot quicker. Someone is going to need to wait near the entrance, though, to make sure they don't sneak out while we're looking for them. Any volunteers?"  
All of the interns simultaneously shot their hands up, then exchanged nervous glances. A particularly tall man near the front pushed his college's arm down. She elbowed him, and he grunted. Alice lowered her brow, looking angry. "You're telling me we came all this way, and none of you want to investigate further?"  
All of the interns shook their heads. Alice slapped hers.

"Alright then," she said. "It looks like its up to just me and you Andy." She snatched her net gun off of the top of the sled and cocked it's spring loaded trigger back, getting it ready to fire.

"Mr. Green, please," he said, pushing his glasses up again.

"Shut up, Andy. I don't give a damn about your formalities right now. Let's get going."

"Oh ho!" laughed Issac, "That lass be fiesty. I'd be bein' careful if I were you," he said as he elbowed the businessman.

"Quite," he coughed. "Will you at least join us, Issac?"

"I ain't never been bested by penguins before," he said. "I don't plan do be doin' it again, ya hear? Of course I'll be goin'."

Alice wasn't sure if she wanted the crazy old man with them or not. Upon remembering how the opposing penguins had knocked her unconscious that one night in the zoo, she was glad to have him along. The penguins were small, yes, but they were clever. She was going to need all the help she could get.

"Let's move, then," she said, "And grab something to defend yourselves with."

Issac nodded, grabbing a ice pick from the sled. It looked menacing, but as long as he wasn't going to swing it at her penguins, Alice thought it was a good choice. Mr. Green didn't grab anything and merely stood there.

"What's wrong Andy?" she asked.

"I don't think I'll be needing anything, thank you," he said, smiling awkwardly. Alice couldn't help but smile back – he was scared. She reached out the cart again and threw him a flashlight.

"At least make yourself useful then and carry this. We don't know how well lit this place is."

Andrew nodded, flicking the flashlight on. It illuminated their way a bit more, but didn't seem to help much. Then, he turned back to the interns. "Time us. If we're not back in five hours, send help," he instructed.

The interns nodded, but none of them looked particularly interested in entering the temple, even to save their boss's behind. Alice shook her head one last time before turning and walking into the passage. The sailor and businessman followed closely behind.

"You seem pretty determined to save your animals," said Andrew as the light from the entrance behind them began growing smaller. "I know we agreed to help them, but you seem almost excited about it."

Alice slung the net gun over her shoulder and straightened her back. "You know? Over the last two weeks we've been following them, they've kinda grown on me. I don't want to see them get killed over... whatever it is they're doing."

"Because you'll loose the money you spent on them, right?"

Alice thought about Mr. Green's statement. It was true that her initial paranoia, inducing her to follow the penguins to the dock, had been over money. Penguins weren't cheap and she knew her penguins were special. They were a once in a lifetime investment opportunity she didn't want to waste. Now, however, she hadn't thought about money in weeks.

"Not so much," she told the businessman. "I mean, I dropped thousands to come here after them. I'm loosing out on money each day because I haven't been running the zoo. I've got someone running it for me, but I'll be lucky if it isn't completely destroyed by the time we get back."

Mr. Green smiled slightly. "So you're telling me you're doing this because you care for them, aren't you?"

Alice gritted her teeth, preparing to defend herself. She calmed down upon realizing that the man was right, though. She wasn't doing it for the money, so she must care for them. In fact, she did care for them. She didn't want them to get hurt. Not just the penguins, either. Her lemur and otter had practically fallen in love. She felt like she needed to protect them, too. She was broken from her thought as Mr. Green continued.

"Don't worry," he said. "I think I feel the same way."

"Huh?" she said, confused.

"You've been paying me to keep a close eye on them for the last two years. They've destroyed countless numbers of my cameras, and have frustrated me to no end. Finally succeeding in seeing the creatures they are has completely how I feel about them."  
Alice nodded. "They came all the way here to save their friend. And for all we know, something bigger too."

"Bah," snorted Issac, fingering the tip of his ice pick. "They all just be a lot of dumb animals, if you be askin' me."

"Nobody's asking you," responded Alice and Andrew simultaneously. The crazy sailor shrugged and began whistling an off-tune song Alice didn't recognize.

"I agree," Mr. Green said in response to Alice's comment. "They wouldn't lead us to this temple unless something bigger was going on. This place has never been documented by human explorers. There could be something big here."

"We'll have to wait and see when we find the Penguins then," returned Mr. Green, his face showing determination.

"Yeah. Hopefully we can get to them before something bad happens."

While talking, Alice didn't even notice the trio had emerged into a large atrium. It was large enough that in the dim light it was difficult to see the walls around them, but Alice could make out her surroundings. Besides the tunnel they had entered from, there didn't seem to be any other exits.

"What now?" asked Andrew. "This is about where we lost the signal for the penguins. We didn't see where they went from here."

"They must have went somewhere. Maybe there is a secret door somewhere," Alice said. "This place looks cryptic enough."

"Secret doors only be in those movies," Issac argued. "Nobody would be buildin' them for real."

"You don't know that," said Alice, shaking her finger at Issac, who frowned. "Besides. Do you see any other way out of here?"

As Issac spun around, examining the walls, a strange vibration came through the floor. Alice had never experienced anything like it before. It grew in strength and soon her teeth were chattering. She wasn't sure what to do... was it an earthquake? She looked at the ground, her vision blurred by the vibrations. After a few moments she noticed something she didn't like. There were now slits between the tiles that had not been there before. They seemed to be growing!

Right when she thought the ground was disappearing below them, large walls clicked out of the ground. They stopped for a moment, but the vibration didn't. They looked like they were about to shoot straight up and crush them against the ceiling! Alice quickly jumped to a spot of ground that she hoped was safe, away from any of the quivering walls. Issac followed suit, falling as he hit the ground near her. Alice attempted to steady her vision to see Andrew stumbling on top of one of the shaking walls. He was going to be smashed!

Without thinking, Alice lunged for the stout man and knocked them both over. Seconds later, walls shot up with lighting speed towards the ceiling. Immediately thereafter, the vibrations stopped. Strange torches appeared on the walls like they had always been there. Then, everything fell silent.

"What just happened?" Mr. Green said, dazed. Alice got up and dusted herself off.

"I don't know, but Issac got trapped on the other side of this wall. She tapped on the tile wall, wondering how the tile hadn't shattered with the immense force that the wall had been shoved upward with.

"I don't mind being away from him," returned Mr. Green. Alice didn't either, but being separated right now was probably not a good thing. They could no longer see the exit. "At least we know which way to go," he said, pointing down the long corridor that had now opened up.

"Where did that come from?" Alice wondered.

"No idea. Maybe we can meet up with Issac later, though. Provided he's unharmed."

"He'll be okay," affirmed Alice. "I'm sure he's been through a lot more than walls springing up under his feet."

"I don't know. Call it a hunch, but I'm pretty sure none of us have ever had a room magically appear under our feet."

Alice smiled slightly at this. Even though they were now lost and confused, she still felt confident. They were going to rescue her animals, and this temple wasn't going to stop them.

"No sense in standing here crying about it," she said. "Let's go."

Andrew nodded, and they set off down the tunnel.

* * *

**~Author's Note****:** Day 5, still enjoying myself. Quick apology to those I lied to about this chapter. You know who you are. I had totally forgotten I had planned for a chapter from Alice in here. (Good job on predicting that, though ;) )


	49. Epiphany

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 49 – Epiphany**

**THEY HAD BEEN WALKING FOREVER.**

The torches went on forever. Skipper was afraid to turn around and look behind him for he might forget which way was forward. The sides of the tunnel never changed. An arch, a torch, a door. In that order always and never ceasing. He didn't remember the tunnel being this long the last time he had been here. Maybe it was just because he was on edge.

"Look, up dere," Julien said, pointing his finger down the tunnel. Skipper could barely make it out, but ahead of them it seemed like there was another tunnel crossing paths with their own.

"What a sight for sore eyes," Skipper said. "Maybe we can finally meet up with the others."

"I am hoping so," returned the lemur.

They hurried to the intersection of tunnels. When they got there, however, there wasn't another soul around. Skipper peered as far as he could down each tunnel, but his eyes were only greeted by more torches and arches.

"_Where they?_" Rico wheezed, scratching his head.

"They could have passed here already, or they could be lagging behind. Or maybe this isn't even the right tunnel," examined Skipper.

"What should we do?" Julien asked.

"Get moving. Each moment we waste we're letting Sarge get closer to the Sun. If they're already further along than us, we need to catch up."

"Keep going? It seems so silly to be walking more when we can be resting and waiting for Marlene," the lemur complained.

Skipper lowered his brow, glaring at the lemur. "You want to rest and wait while Sarge gains the power to conquer the world?"

"There is no way we could be stopping him without the others..." Julien started, but Skipper cut him off.

"If there's anything I hate in this world, it's excuses," he said, solemnly. "Standing around here won't get a single useful thing done. We need to move."

Julien blinked. "But..."

"No buts. Remember what I said about following orders?"

"Marlene..."  
"We'll find Marlene, don't worry. I won't let anything happen to her."  
Julien looked worried, but nodded slowly. Skipper wondered if he felt guilty for nearly getting caught up in that strange Madagascar-themed room, without thinking about her at all. He hoped the tall lemur would not succumb to his own wants again.

"Skipper!" called a familiar voice from down the tunnel behind the leader bird. He spun around and was relieved to see Manfredi's red eye glowing back at him.

"Manfredi!" he returned. "Where did you come from?"

"I was locked in a room," he said after he got close enough so he didn't have to shout.

"Huh. Out of all of us you were the last person I suspected would be messing around with the doors," the flat-headed penguin.

"I did not open any doors," the cyborg countered darkly.

Skipper opened his beak, but was interrupted by Julien. "Where is Marlene?" he said quickly, face showing concern. Skipper spun around and noticed for the first time that Manfredi was alone.

"Yeah, Private's not with you either," he said.

Manfredi tossed his knife from his robotic flipper to the organic one. "Your missing soldier. The tall one."

"You found Kowalski? What happened?" Skipper interrupted, suddenly feeling the worst. Had Manfredi been the lone survivor of a battle involving all of the others? Had they all been killed? Skipper's eyes jumped to Manfredi's knife. It didn't have any blood on it. Neither did Manfredi's feathers, but he wasn't so sure nothing had happened.

Manfredi held up a flipper, looking tired. "I shall explain as we continue towards the Sun," he said. Skipper, Julien, and Rico agreed and they started walking down the path opposite where Manfredi had emerged. It was more of the same, but Skipper was now more reassured it was the correct direction now that they had met up with Manfredi.

"I was unaware the tunnels split into multiple directions such as this," Manfredi said, gesturing back to the intersection. "Maybe it has something to do with the large number of beings present here, as opposed to last time?" He looked thoughtfully at Skipper.

"Eighty-six the supernatural talk," returned the leader. "Where are Marlene and Private?"  
Manfredi turned back to the leader. His face was blank, not showing anything about what he was thinking. Skipper had always known him as more of an emotional creature, but ever since they had been reunited Manfredi had seemed like a wall of nothingness, broken only by his most painful memories.

"We found Kowalski, yes," Manfredi began. "He seemed to just be standing around in a room, doing nothing important. Your Private and the otter were happy to see him. I did not enter the room. When the others exited the room, Kowalski offered me a handshake. I was suspicious, but I accepted. I wish now I had not trusted him."

Skipper's eyes grew wide.

"_What happened?_" Rico asked for him. His flippers were balled into fists and he looked tense.

"He wrenched my dagger from me and tossed it into the room. Private prevented us from getting into a greater conflict, so I went to retrieve my knife. That is when I became trapped."

"He locked the door shut on you?" Skipper said. "Kowalski's smart, and he hasn't seen you since you attacked me in the HQ. He probably saw you as a threat."

"A threat, yes, but not for the reasons you describe," continued Manfredi. "After I was locked into the room, I heard my target's voice."

Skipper was bewildered. He let Manfredi continue. "My target and your Kowalski have worked out some sort of a strange deal. Kowalski agreed to help him get to the Sun, while my target agreed to not harm Kowalski or any of us."

"Blast!" cursed Skipper. "While Kowalski was on the boat, Sarge must have persuaded him. That's why we found Kowalski's navigational equipment there."

Manfredi nodded. "Private and the otter have joined them, as well."

"_Private? Marlene?_" Rico wondered out loud.

"I only heard their voices through the door and did not witness the exchange, but Private willingly went with Kowalski. Marlene had no choice but to accept, as well. I have no reason to believe any of them were hurt, but I did not follow them to make sure."

"Why not? I'm guessing you got out. You should have stopped them!" Skipper argued.

Manfredi shook his head. "The otter released me from my prison, yes, but she did so conditionally. She request that I not follow. She asked that I meet up with you, and then locate them as a group. I can only agree that it was the best choice of action."

If what Manfredi said was true, Skipper had to credit Marlene. Even if she didn't want to go along with Sarge's plan, she had made a wise decision. He wondered if she was going to try to delay them from reaching the Sun. He hoped so.

"So you found us," Skipper nodded. "That's a plus. Now we need to get to the Sun, and fast."

"I agree. There is no doubt in my mind that my target won't take advantage of Kowalski. It is not out of his range of ability to slaughter your friends, even though they agreed to work together."

Skipper felt a brief chill go up his spine. When it subsided, he said, "Sadly, I have to agree with you." He turned to Rico and Julien. "Double time, troops."

"_Uh, K'waski!"_ blabbered Rico, flapping his flippers wildly. Skipper arched a brow.

"What about Kowalski?" he said.

Rico spoke more. His words were distorted, but Skipper could make out their meaning. "_K'waski mad you left no us. Ran away 'cuz you come back not quick enough! Talk maybe you not care for us. Really mad._"

Skipper felt his breath leave him. He had never asked why Kowalski had stormed out of the bunker shortly before his arrival, which had lead to his kidnapping. Rico's story told him Kowalski had been upset with him. Kowalski had been his best friend before he left. Why hadn't he thought about him? He felt stupid suddenly.

"Mutiny is the most common among the second-in-command," Manfredi said, repeating his statement from when they first arrived to Antarctica.

Skipper clenched his beak at the statement. "He didn't team up with Sarge because he's betraying us! He did it because he felt like I didn't care about them!"

While most would be intimidated by Skipper's sudden outburst, Manfredi did not flinch. He merely stood there, looking directly at Skipper. Skipper held his ground, but couldn't help but feel a little intimidated after a few seconds. Skipper finally averted his eyes away from the robot and back towards Rico.

"I left the zoo that night to go find Manfredi. Kowalski knew that. He knew it because he had overheard my talk that one night with Julien. You knew that I wasn't coming back, too, Julien, but you were more concerned about Marlene. There was the night you attacked me too, Manfredi. I told them that you were my old teammate. Kowalski knew from that moment that I was going to run off. Why didn't he do anything about it? Talk to me? I'm such a fool for leaving without talking to you men."

Rico placed a consoling flipper on his leader's back. "_Is'kay,_" he purred.

"It's not!" Skipper returned, slightly more angrily than he had tried. Rico flinched slightly, but only looked concerned. "Kowalski was the one who always wanted to know about my past, wanted to know about my secrets. It wasn't because he was selfish and just wanted to know everything it was because he wanted to help me. He just wanted to help deal with the fact I lost Johnson and you, Manfredi. I never opened up to him, though. Then I ran off. It was like kicking dirt in his face. All he wanted to do was help."

Skipper wasn't sure why he was pouring his heart out suddenly to the other animals standing around him. Maybe it was because he was worried for his strategist. Maybe he didn't want to feel like he had failed. Maybe it _because_ he felt like he had failed.

Ever since his return with Manfredi, Skipper had been concerned for Kowalski's well-being. He didn't want the tall bird to get hurt or killed over something from his past, something that Kowalski should never have gotten tangled up with in the first place. It hadn't been for the right reasons, though. He was more concerned with rescuing his teammate because he felt as though it was his duty. He didn't want to fail—rescuing Kowalski was just another mission. An everyday, ordinary mission. He hadn't felt like his friend's life was resting on it.

And now, he was following a madman. Roped up deeper into Skipper's past than he could ever be. Skipper remembered the time he had first met Sargent Fishslader. The penguin was a great persuader—he told him about all of the great adventures he would have. He never told Skipper about his real plans, his dark aspirations. Skipper could only assume the maniacal penguin hadn't told Kowalski about his real plans for the Sun.

The flat-headed penguin knew leaving without saying goodbye that night had been a mistake, but he never realized it would come to this extreme. He had wanted to find Manfredi and get his questions answered. He could have done that all the same with Rico, Private, and the intellectual tagging along. Maybe then they wouldn't be here, on the brink of Sarge getting his hands on the Sun again.

It would have meant getting his team involved in his past, though. That was what he wanted to avoid all along. Reliving the memories he had through telling the stories to his men. He never knew that not telling them would result in reliving them on such a higher level. Lives had very nearly been lost, they had ventured through the Penguin City once more, they returned to this temple, Kowalski was working for Sarge. Skipper wished he could go back and time and change the choices he had made. He knew if that was possible, though, these troubles would have been solved years ago. Manfredi probably wished the same thing.

"_You kay?_" cooed Rico. He had replaced his flipper on Skipper's back, breaking him from his trance. He realized that he was staring at the ground, and he returned his vision back to his explosives expert.

"I've hurt Kowalski enough that he's working with my enemy," said Skipper.

"But was he knowing dat de evil fishy-penguins are your enemy? Dey kidnapped him, but dey didn't have to tell de smart penguin de were evil," Julien said thoughtfully.

"You're right," Skipper realized. "He probably doesn't know anything about Sarge's plans or who that bastard has killed. Manfredi, he's being roped into a trap!"

Manfredi nodded like he had made that conclusion a long time ago. Not just before he had been locked in the room, either. Skipper wondered why the mechanical bird held useful things like this from him for so long, revealing them only after they would have been useful.

"_K'waski only wants not us get killed,_" Rico wheezed.

"That's true. Even though he was mad at me for running off, he wasn't stupid. The only reason he would be working with someone who kidnapped him is to protect himself and his friends. He's helping Sarge because he thinks it means that we won't be harmed," Skipper explained.

"My target is not trustworthy. He will take advantage of Kowalski," offered Manfredi.

"We need to find them fast. If I can explain to Kowalski what Sarge is really doing, he won't help him any longer. I just hope we're not too late."

* * *

**~Author's Note****: **Day 6. This chapter was a little difficult to punch out, and I'm not 100% satisfied with how it came out. I just think I'm getting excited for the final climax. Let me know what you thought about this chapter!


	50. Harbinger

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 50 – Harbinger**

**"WE'LL NEED TO SET A TRAP," SAID SARGE**.

"A trap?" Marlene exclaimed, "Why? For who?"

The blind-eyed penguin turned around to her. He hadn't stopped smiling since they had been reunited, and it made Marlene very uncomfortable. She didn't trust the penguin in the slightest, and knew that he was aware of something they were not.

"For Skipper and Manfredi, of course," he answered. "They will not be as understanding of our situation as you two were. They'll try to kill Gier, Thurgo, and I."

"Manfredi is trapped, though. Skipper on his own won't do anything if he sees us unharmed."

"Manfredi _was_ trapped," Thurgo growled at Marlene. Her heart dropped.

"Ever since I met you, otter, you have been very secret. You should know by now that its wrong to hold secrets from me." He glanced at Gier and the rock hopper silently chuckled. "I witnessed you free Manfredi. I don't know why he didn't charge after me, but you're lucky he didn't. If he did, you three would be dead right now."

Private and Kowalski both shot angry looks at Marlene. They made her feel uncomfortable, but she tried to maintain a look of confidence on her face. Letting Sarge onto how frightened she was wasn't going to help anything. "I couldn't just leave him in there. There's no way we'd find him again to let him out."

"It was a fair decision. However, I strongly suggest you stop interfering _before_ you get on my bad side. I've got nothing against you, otter, but aiding my enemies is a quick way to give me just that."

Marlene was completely unsure why the penguin Sargent didn't view her as an enemy. She had toppled those crates on top of them. Why didn't they want her dead as much as they wanted Manfredi? She was happy to have this momentary truce, though. For now, she turned to Kowalski who still looked upset at her.

"You shouldn't give me that look," she growled. "You know darn well it wasn't right to leave him there to rot."

"That penguin is mentally unstable, Marlene," Kowalski responded calmly. "He needed to be separate from us. I really have no idea why you were working with him in the first place."

"For your information, Manfredi came to the docks to help rescue _you_."

"Pfft," Thurgo laughed. "That bloke came to cut Sarge up. What phony universe you livin' in, princess?"

"He blew Skipper's entire operation on the dock by charging after me so much. Honestly, if he wouldn't have given away Skipper's troops positions, we may have actually struggled," Sarge laughed. He high-fived Thurgo, who chuckled.

Marlene felt her muscles tense up slightly, but tried to relax. She glanced at Private, who was diligently following Kowalski. He didn't seem particularly angry or disturbed. If anything, he was happy that he was following Kowalski again. Marlene wondered if he realized they may very well be prisoners of war, right now.

"Anyway, as I was saying," began Sarge. "Skipper and Manfredi will attempt to kill me. Therefore, if we arrive to the antechamber before them, we must set a trap."

Kowalski glanced up towards the ceiling. "These arches," he said. "If they are present at our destination, we could made a net trap of some sort. The problem is, we would need a great amount of rope to construct such a trap."

Marlene gritted her teeth. She couldn't believe what the intellectual was saying. Was he really considering trapping Skipper—his own leader and best friend. She glanced at Private again and met his gaze. He almost seemed to be smiling.

"We don't have that kind of rope," said Sarge, "but we do have something else you might be able to use." He stopped for a moment and dug in the backpack that Thurgo was heaving. He produced a few of the same firecrackers Marlene had seen on his boat and tossed one to Kowalski.

"A firework?" he said, bemused. "I don't think this will do anything but entertain them."

"It's not your typically firecracker. These I salvaged directly from my base, before Manfredi blew it up. It's highly compact plastic explosive, triggered when you pull the fuse out of it. It'll make an explosion big enough to cause some real damage."

Kowalski's grin faded to a more serious look. "We can't use these. They could seriously hurt or even kill Skipper."

"It's all you've got. If you want to uphold our deal, I suggest you devise something."

Kowalski looked down at battery-sized death mechanism in his flipper. Marlene couldn't figure out what he was thinking about, but she knew it wasn't good.

"You couldn't use explosives against Skipper and the others," she pleaded to the tall bird. "at least not to capture them. I'm pretty sure explosives are meant to kill, not capture."

"I know, I know," he said, waving his flipper. He tossed the plastic explosive back to the flat-headed penguin and nodded. "I've got an idea, but it's a long shot. I'll wait until we get to the antechamber to tell you."

Marlene felt her anger levels rise at Kowalski's words. He was so hellbent on preserving the agreement he had made with Sarge that he was overlooking Skipper's safety, possibly even his life. The intellectual was only trying to protect them from Sarge's wrath, yes, but this was not the way to go about it!

Not sure what to do, she grabbed Private's flipper and walked a few steps away from the others. He looked surprised, but followed her motion. When they were on the other side of the hallway, she spoke as softly as she could. She knew that Sarge could probably still hear them from the other side of the tunnel, but she needed to get at least someone on her side.

"You've got to help me stop them," she said softly. "We can't let them set a trap for Skipper. If they capture him, we're all goners. He's going to get the Sun then, too."

Private blinked. "Dun worry, Marlene. Kowalski knows what he is doing."

"How naïve can you be?" she exclaimed, throwing her paws up. "Kowalski's been tricked into trusting Sarge. He thinks that this deal is going to be upheld even after Sarge gets the Sun."

Private averted his eyes to the ground momentarily, but returned them to Marlene's gaze. "We can't fight him, though. He's too powerful for us. This agreement is our only hope."

"Even if it results in Skipper and Manfredi's deaths from an explosives trap?"

Private gulped audibly, presumably thinking about his leader. "Kowalski will set a trap that won't hurt them. I know he will."

"With explosives? C'mon, Private, think about it!" Marlene returned, nearly shouting it out.

"Hey Sarge," came Thurgo's voice from the opposite side of the hallway. "If they keep bickering so much maybe we won't have to k–" his voice trailed off as Sarge elbowed him hard in the stomach.

"We can hear you," he shouted towards Marlene. She scowled. "And you're still hiding things from me. I just don't understand why."

Glancing back to Private, she saw that he looked more uneasy than he was before. He held his beak with his flippers as they rejoined the group. Marlene made sure not to make eye contact with Sarge, instead favoring the back of Kowalski's head. After a few moments the tall bird glanced back at her. He winked. It made her feel a little more confident in what was going to happen, but only slightly.

"Its in your best interest to control your... associates, Kowalski," the blind-eyed penguin said.

"I assure you Marlene and Private do not wish to instigate," he returned. Marlene couldn't help but sense a little bit of fear in his voice. She felt as though it was a good idea to not continue pressing Sarge's patience.

"Good, because we are nearly to the antechamber. I presume I will be able to retrieve the Sun without hindrance."

Kowalski merely nodded. Ahead of them the tunnel finally ended, as did the torches and the doors. They emerged into a massive, empty room with a dome shaped roof. At the apex of the dome Marlene recognized one of the spinning, disks of light. All together, the room was much brighter than the hallways they had been walking through.

The walls of the dome were lined with sculptures similar to the walls Marlene had seen on the walls outside the temple. They curved inward, and were lined with small spires of alternating heights. Here, however, they seemed to be engraved with mysterious symbols. Marlene could only make out a few massive pictures of the sun. It was carved into the black tile with massive fire shooting off into the distance.

What really grabbed her attention, however, was the glowing orb in the center of the room. She had never seen anything like it before in her entire life. It bathed the entire room in pure white light, causing long shadows to be cast from the spires. It was nearly too bright for her to look at directly, and she shielded her eyes from it. A soft, strange hissing sound was coming from it, almost like water evaporating.

Even though, she was able to make it out. The orb seemed to be contained in some strange container, almost like a canister. It seemed to be suspended above a pedestal in the middle of the room, which was raised on a platform. Behind that platform were two higher platforms that also had pedestals. She couldn't make out what the pedestals were sculpted to look like, but knew that each one was unique.

The entire sight of it was incredible. Was this it? The sun? Marlene couldn't believe her eyes. Was she really looking at what Skipper had described to be Earth's life energy? It was glorious. She felt herself being drawn to the orb as she stared at it, but shook her head. She needed to stay focused.

"So Skipper actually did return the Sun. What a fool," said Sarge.

"It's... It's amazing, Sarge," babbled Thurgo. He dropped the backpack and began waddling to the raised platform. Sarge held him back though, and he turned around. "It's greater than you ever described."

"I agree. Keep your mind clear, though. It contains enough power to make weaker penguins loose their minds. You're stronger than that, right?"

Thurgo nodded.

"Good. Now, before the fun really gets started, we need to do something about that entrance." He reproduced some of the firecrackers from his backpack and tossed them in Kowalski's direction. "I hope you know what you're doing, for your own sake."

Kowalski nodded, untwisting the explosive packets so that they were separate from each other. He proceeded to the one entrance to the antechamber, the entrance they had emerged from. Marlene followed, wanting to distance herself from the gaping birds. Private waddled close behind her.

"This will be perfect," he said, waddling up to the last arch before the hallway opened into the chamber.

"What trap are you going to set?" Marlene asked.

"This is plastic explosive. Unlike its black powder counterpart, it produces a bright and loud explosion. It is powerful, but if small amount is used, we can stun Skipper and the others without harming them. Hopefully long enough to restrain them."

Marlene was confused, but trusted in his expertise. He was unraveling one of the firecrackers and pulling a strange, putty-like material out of it. When he had collected most of it, he raveled the explosive back up, making sure the fuse was not harmed in his process. Then, he attached the explosive to the arch. He repeated the process with a few more of the firecrackers. When they were all placed, he stood back up. Using some extra fuse, he fed a lead just around the corner that he could pull.

"That should do it," he said proudly.

"You're sure this won't hurt them?" Marlene asked.

"Positive. I wouldn't want the others to get hurt. I just want to help Sarge get his... whatever that is and then get out." Kowalski returned.

"You have no idea what that thing is?" gasped Marlene.

"I know it is called the Sun, but more than that I am not sure of. Sarge told me that he once used it to power an entire military complex, but I find that highly illogical. It is possible that if it emits a high level of light, some electricity could be generated, but not nearly enough to power an entire structure such as he described."

"Do you know why he built and powered that structure?" Marlene asked.

"No, and that's where the problem lies. Skipper never told me anything about Sarge or the complex in Denmark," Kowalski responded.

"K'walski," Private piped in, "Sarge built that military base to take over the world! He wanted to hold the Sun there while the rest of the world suffered!"

Kowalski pinched between his eyes. "I find it very hard to believe that this artifact contains that sort of power, but I will trust you."

"Sarge is merely repeating his plans. You see that now, don't you?" Marlene said.

"Honestly, Marlene, I don't know what to think. All I know is that right now we need to capture Skipper and Manfredi. When that is done, Sarge will leave us alone. Maybe later we can regroup and plan what to do next. As long as all of us leave here with our lives, we've won."

"Is the trap ready to go?" asked Sarge. He was standing up on the raised platform with Thurgo and Gier at his sides. Gier was brandishing his rifle. Marlene knew he was getting ready to point it at them immediately after Sarge got the sun.

"Just a moment," called back Kowalski. He pretended to still be fiddling with the fuses.

"We aren't going to leave here with our lives, though, are we Marlene?" Private whimpered, suddenly. Marlene looked at him to see a terrified look on his face, like he had just come to some sad realization. When she didn't respond, he continued, "I remember Manfredi's story... about what happened to Johnson. Sarge doesn't let his enemies escape with their lives."

"We're not his enemies, though," Kowalski responded quickly. "I don't know who Johnson is, but I know Sarge killed him. Sarge isn't going to waste our time on us."

"After he gets the Sun, Kowalski, you don't know what's going to happen," countered Marlene. "At the very least he's going to go after Skipper. Even if we're not his enemies, he is."  
"Our agreement is void if he does attempt to harm Skipper. If he decides to make that decision, it will be the last one he ever makes," said Kowalski darkly. Marlene got a slight confidence boost at his words; she knew he was still on their side. She just wished he wasn't still working so hard to preserve this agreement. Sarge couldn't be trusted!

"It must be ready by now," called Sarge. "I can't wait much longer!"

Kowalski and Private exchanged glances with Marlene. The otter couldn't help but see the fear on their faces. She was already shaking out of fear, herself.

It was about to happen. All of her training during the last two weeks had built up to this. She was about to be able to use the defensive moves, the kicks and punches, the flips. She was terrified, yes, but more confident than she was during the engagement on the dock back in New York. Private and Rico had shown her their tricks, and she knew she would need all of them.

All of the conversations she had with Manfredi had lead up to this point. Her growing hatred for the penguin that now stood across the chamber from her was a direct result of that. Manfredi was insane, yes, but he had been made that way by Sarge. Melded into the shell of a penguin he was by the murderer that stood across from her now. While Marlene would never possess the hatred that Manfredi felt towards him, she knew that she was more than willing to help Manfredi get his revenge.

Suddenly, her thoughts fell on Julien, the self-proclaimed lemur king she had fallen in love with. Their heartfelt exchange on the boat had been one that she will never forget. The lemur had a heart, and she wanted to protect that. He would protect her, as well. She knew he would.

As her confidence grew, she felt herself stand. Her hands balled into fists and the muscles in her arms were so tight that it almost hurt. Her vision began to grow blurry as she felt herself become less and less afraid. The fear that left her body became replaced by twice as much determination and confidence as she felt her heart rate quicken. She was ready for anything.

Suddenly, she was brought back to reality by Private pulling on her paw. Her vision cleared again as he spoke. She didn't catch what he was saying, and rubbed her eyes. Had she almost lost it?

"The trap is ready!" shouted Kowalski.

"Good. Perhaps for once I can take the Sun in peace, then," Sarge called back. He began reaching for the sun, ready to take it.

"Wait!" called Kowalski suddenly, waving his flippers. Sarge froze in place, spinning back around to look at the intellectual.

"What is it?"

"About that rope. We're still going to need some."

* * *

**~Author's Note**: Woo! Day 7, chapter 50. We should celebrate!

More seriously, however, the final showdown is happening soon. Real soon. If you can't tell, its going to begin in the next chapter. I'm so pumped to write it!


	51. Ascendancy

**The Speed of Darkness**  
**Chapter 51 – Ascendancy**

Skipper's Log. 11:00 Hours on September the 30th.

"_Our ride is finally leaving, thank goodness. I'm sick of being trapped here, to be honest, and I'm pretty sure Manfredi is as well. Johnson, on the other hand, has spent every waking hour in the library reading about this temple. He said he'd share what he found with us later. I hope he found some helpful information._

_ "Even though we were stuck here for almost two weeks, the time spent here was not wasted time. Johnson was the most productive, yes. He gained the knowledge we need to know how to fight this thing and what its capable of. Manfredi and I, on the other hand, had something else in mind._

_ "When we get back to Denmark, we have a hell of a fight ahead of us. Our only choice is to sneak back into the penguin base and take the Sun back directly from under Sarge's beak. Its not going to be easy. At least not as easy as it was last time. Last time Sarge was inviting us in, wanting us to come forward so he could humiliate us. This time he'll want nothing more than to keep us out. He's got his prize, and he won't be happy about us stealing it back._

_ "For that reason, we don't have many options. Manfredi and I have been analyzing the maps and blueprints again, looking for any secret route in. They show the power chamber—presumably where Sarge will store the sun—smack dab in the middle of the bunker. It's surrounded by penguin sleeping quarters. That means that as soon as we start shooting, we'll have three thousand penguins shooting back._

_ "Obviously we can't barrel down the front door. We're going to use the secret tunnel we constructed to sneak fish out of the freezer that Manfredi and I built when we first arrived. It'll get us closer to the Sun than if we walked in the front door, but still far from it. Either a miracle is going to happen and we'll get through undetected, or I'm going to have to get used to killing."_

_ "Manfredi seems to have grown darker over the past few days. He was never a particularly cheerful guy, but now he's just... dark. He rarely speaks anymore and always has this look on his face like he's about to strangle the next penguin that looks at him funny._

_ "However, when I asked him if he was confident about what we were about to do, his facade dropped. He told me how scared he was. He knew it had to be done, but he wished that it wasn't him that was doing it. I tried to reassure him—I know he is strong-willed enough to get us through this. He's got to stop living in the past, though. His fiance and kid are dead, yes, but the rest of the world will be too if we can't stop Caspian._

_ "Johnson seems to realize that more than ever after doing his research. I don't know what he discovered, but I hope he'll share it with us soon. We've got two weeks of travel ahead of us to prepare for this mission, both mentally and physically._

_ "I'd say this is our last mission—our swan song—if it wasn't still our first."_

* * *

**"ROPE? ROPE FOR WHAT?"** complained Sarge from across the chamber, seeming annoyed.

"These explosives aren't set to kill. However, they will stun Skipper and Manfredi long enough for us to tie them up," Kowalski explained.

Sarge shook his head, signaling Thurgo to dig some nylon rope out of their pack. Marlene noted that it wasn't very much, but it would be enough to bind Skipper and Manfredi. The large penguin heaved it across the chamber and it landed near the intellectual.

Kowalski picked up the rope and draped it over his shoulder. He then grabbed the fuse and tucked himself into an alcove just behind the corner.

"You two need to keep watch," he instructed. "Stand near the opening. They'll get less suspicious if they see you first. Then, when they get close enough, I'll shout, 'Now!" Shield your eyes and ears as best as you can and jump away, because I will then activate the explosion. Then we will need to bind Skipper and Manfredi as soon as possible.

"What do you mean 'we'?" Marlene argued, "You're telling me you're expecting us to tie up our own friend?"

"Precisely," nodded Kowalski solemnly.

"I'm not touching that rope," Marlene returned, making Kowalski Scowl. He looked at Private.

"I can't tie up the Skippah. It just seems so... wrong," he responded, waving his flippers awkwardly.

"Fine," shot the tall bird. "I'll have to do it myself."

"It doesn't have to be this way, Kowalski," urged Marlene. "We can signal Skipper of what Sarge is up to before he even gets in here. Then we can overpower them. It's going to be seven versus three. Think about it."

"They are armed," Kowalski argued.

"So? If we don't do anything, though, Sarge is going to get the Sun! And then he's probably just going to kill Skipper anyway!" The otter returned helplessly.

Kowalski averted his eyes to the explosive trap, then returned them to Marlene. "And if I don't do this, all of us could die. None of our lives are worth risking for this, Marlene."

"Thats weird," Marlene said, crossing her arms. "That's the dead opposite of what Skipper's been telling us for the last two weeks. He said that there's a chance we would get hurt or killed, yes, but he promised that he wouldn't let anything happen to any of us. At least he acknowledges that some things are worth sacrifices."

"Are you saying you'd die to stop Sarge, Marlene?"  
In her mind Marlene shot back an immediate, "Yes!". In the real world, she felt the word get caught in her throat. She didn't know if she liked the idea of sacrificing herself because of Skipper and Manfredi's problems. Maybe she was being a fool.

"I didn't think so," continued Kowalski, lowering his brow darkly. "Now, get into position. They could be here any moment." He turned to Sarge and shouted, "You're good to go."

"Finally," smiled Sarge. He turned around and prepared to remove the Sun from its pedestal.

Private grabbed Marlene's paw and lead her into the tunnel opening. She glanced over to Kowalski, who nodded. She felt a slight fear rise inside her again. Sarge was about to take the Sun, and she was about to help trap her friend. Was this really better than dieing? The idea terrified her. She didn't know what to think as she heard quick footsteps coming from up the corridor.

* * *

"Issac, wait up!" Alice shouted. She saw the the crazy Salior several hundred feet in front of her, down the hallway. It was a miracle she had spotted him, and she didn't want to loose him again.

The man was moving fast, though. He obviously had not heard the redhead's call. Alice sprinted as fast as she could to try to keep up, Mr. Green bounding after her. The skinny sailor was faster, though, and she was loosing him.

"I'll get ye, ye stinkin' penguins!" He shouted madly.

"Issac, hold on!" Alice called again, to no avail.

As Alice continued, her heart pounding in her ears, she began to see an opening at the end of the passageway. It was a long way away from her yet, but she could see Issac approaching it. She spotted two specks of animals standing in the opening, as well. It was her otter and a penguin!

She tried to increase her speed as much as she could, but felt herself slow down slightly as her muscles argued. She wasn't used to this kind of exertion. She gathered her breath to call to Issac one more time. Right as she opened her mouth, however, a massive shock knocked the wind right out of her.

* * *

Marlene watched as Sarge removed the canister from the pedestal. It looked like he had struggled against some unseen force for a while, but with a grunt the container rolled off strange resting place and into the blind-eyed penguin's evil grasp.

What happened next caught her completely off guard. A shock wave rolled through the chamber, seeming to originate from the center of the room immediately after Sarge plucked the Sun from its holster. It was the most powerful thing Marlene had ever felt. Her breath was forced out of her lungs and she was knocked flat on the ground. Her vision was blurry from the sudden force the blow had given her, and she found it difficult to inhale.

Next, a powerful vibration began shaking the ground below her. Her vision briefly flashed to the ground giving out below Rico upon when they first entered, and she tried to dig her claws into the tile below her. She was sure the ground below her was about to give out, and managed to muster a meager scream. The entire place seemed like it was coming apart!

The vibration began to subside after what seemed like an eternity. Marlene shakily pulled herself off of the ground, glancing around her. Private and Kowalski had also been floored by the mysterious force, but Thurgo, Gier, and Sarge seemed unaffected. She glanced over to the leader penguin, grasping the canister in his hands. Inside the glowing orb was now greatly dimmed. It no longer produced the blinding, white light it had previously. Now it emitted a strange, redish-orange glow. It was hardly enough for Marlene to see anything.

Sarge raised the sun above his head in what Marlene could only describe as a sort of victory move. She saw his beak move in a sort of laughter, but her ears were ringing from the earthquake that had just rocked the place. At least she thought it was an earthquake.

As the penguin brought the glowing orb above his head, an icy cold win rushed into the room from the tunnel opening. It was like it was directly from outside, and Marlene immediately began to shiver. As the wind picked up in speed it extinguished the blue torches, row by row. After a moment they were all extinguished, bathing the hallway in darkness.

Finally, the wind subsided along with the vibration and the ringing in the otter's ears. All that was left now was the slightly glowing Sun and the icy cold air that now surrounded the otter. There also seemed to be some sparkly bits raining down from over Sarge. Marlene looked up and noticed that the rotating energy was now missing. Had it exploded, causing the earthquake?

She wrapped herself in her arms as her breath formed puffs of steam in front of her. It was very cold now, and she wished she had brought her clothes with her.

* * *

"What the hell was that?" Alice asked nobody in particular, pulling herself off of the ground.

"Seismic activity, it seems," responded Mr. Green, breathing heavily. The zookeeper offered him a hand to get up, and they stood. The businessman shined his flashlight down the hallway. It extended just far enough for them to see Issac take off towards the room again.

"Ye think a 'lil earthquake is gonna scare me?" he shouted.

"He's insane!" Alice shouted quietly, then turned to Andrew. "We've got to stop him. He'll blow everything for us if he charges in there!"

"There's no way we can catch up to him now," offered the stout man, pushing his glasses up his nose. "We should proceed more carefully. I'm surprised enough that the vibration of that earthquake didn't rupture our internal organs."

Alice scowled, but responded, "Fine." With that, they took off again, but this time at a slow jog.

In a short while they had gotten close enough for comfort. Mr. Green's flashlight shown on the two animals standing in the open, the otter's eyes reflecting brightly back at them. Moments later Issac crashed by, not even seeming to notice them. Alice was relieved; either he hadn't noticed them standing in the darkness or knew that those were her animals. She continued forward.

The otter seemed to notice her and began waving its arms. It seemed as though it was trying to gesture Alice to hide! Alice wasn't sure if she should heed the animal's warning or charge in. Her question was answered as Mr. Green yanked her behind one of the arches and flicked off his flashlight.

"What..." she said as the businessman clamped his hand over her mouth.

"Look," he instructed, pointing towards the antechamber.

Issac was charging full speed towards the strange altar in the middle of the room. He was muttering curse words under his breath, swinging his ice-pick threateningly. Alice could barely make the scene out through the strange glow that seemed to be coming from an item that one of the penguins was grasping. From this distance Alice couldn't make out what penguin it was, but she knew it was like nothing she had ever seen before.

She saw the penguin in the center lean over to one of his counterparts, possibly telling him something. Then, when Issac was almost on top of them, he jumped back and onto one of the higher ledges. Issac jumped up onto the first platform, tripping as he did so. He stumbled but continued anyway.

The penguin holding the canister's face was now illuminated by the glow. Alice could make out a blind eye, complete with his scarred face. It was the one that attacked her in the zoo! She gripped the handle of her net launcher tightly, resisting the urge to charge into the room. She twitched forward though, and Andrew tightened his grip around her hand to stop her from charging.

Right when she thought Issac was about to impale the bird on his ice pick, the bird on the platform twisted the canister open. It wasn't open very much, but it was enough. A pure white energy ball seemed to force itself out of the crack that the penguin had made, moving insanely fast towards Issac. The man expressed a look of horror as he was engulfed in the light entirely.

Alice gasped as she was pulled closer to the wall by Andrew. The light ball whipped by her face, continuing down the hallway behind her. She felt her heart skip a beat. She didn't even know what the light was, and yet it terrified her.

It was for good reason, though. The two peaked their heads out around the corner of the pillar. The light had blinded Alice, but she could still make out the scene in front of her. Her otter and the penguin standing in the opening of the tunnel had dodged the light and were now standing behind two more pillars. Her eyes scanned around, looking for Issac.

Her heart skipped a beat when she saw a a heap of clothes laying in the middle of the lower platform. The ice pick was nearby, resting on the black tile. The clothes had fallen in a neat pile, like Issac had vanished from inside them. Alice noticed small wisps of smoke emerging from the neck and arms of the shirt. It was smoking.

Issac Hull was no more. She exchanged a terrified glance with Andrew before returning her gaze to the antechamber. Thank goodness the businessman had stopped her from charging after the Sailor, otherwise that may very well have been her too.

"What the hell is that thing?" she thought out loud.

* * *

"Damn it," shouted Sarge. "I was hoping that I would not need to use the Sun so soon."

Marlene stood behind the pillar she had ducked behind, mouth agape.

The penguin turned to towards the entrance and smiled slightly, tucking the tightly recapped container under his flipper. "Now you see the power that this object possesses. And to think, it was only open for a few inches, and for a few seconds. After witnessing that silly human sacrifice himself in such a way, I hope you won't try to interfere either."

Kowalski, Private, and Marlene remained silent. She didn't even know who that man had been, but Marlene still found it hard to breathe. He had been there one moment, and now he was completely gone—vaporized into a puff of smoke.

Sarge smirked in their direction. "I trust you are still prepared to trap Skipper?"

"A-Affirmative," returned Kowalski shakily.

* * *

**~Author's Note**: Day 8 of 11. So it begins, muhahaha! The next few chapters will span the climax of the story - the final showdown between Sarge and Manfredi. Our heroes and our villains. Who's going to win? Will it end in tragedy? Seriously, I don't know.


	52. Knifed

**The Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 52 - Knifed**

* * *

**"WHAT WAS THAT?"**

Julien and Rico seemed to ask it at the same time, pulling themselves off of the ground. Manfredi merely glanced in Skipper's direction, knowing exactly what had happened. Skipper nodded to him, and then turned to the confused bird and lemur.

"Sarge had got his hands on the Sun," he said, simply. Neither animal seemed to react.

"So de Sun causes de shaking of de Earth?" Julien asked, confused.

"It can cause far more than just that. There's no time to explain now, though," Skipper returned. "Let's move out."

As soon as Skipper turned to run full speed down the hallway, Manfredi dove into him, knocking him to the ground. Before Skipper could even think about asking him why he had done that, he opened his eyes to see a massive, glowing wave of energy pass over the top of them. It was blinding white and like Skipper had never seen before.

After it had passed, Skipper turned to Manfredi, giving him a confused look. The bird didn't respond. He merely gave Skipper a solemn look. Neither of them knew what the energy had been, but they both knew it had something to do with the Sun.

"Double time!" Skipper ordered, picking himself up. Rico and Julien peeked out from behind the arches they had dove behind and fell back into line behind him.

"Dat... energy ball," Julien commented as they ran. "It was like it was being de real Sun. It felt hot." As he spoke, wisps of vapor formed in front of his snout, signifying how cold it had now become.

"All I know is that we were smart to avoid it. I don't think we want to get caught up in that thing," said Skipper. Manfredi nodded.

"_Kaboom!_" Rico called from the back of the group.

"For some reason I think the result would be much worse than an explosion," returned Skipper.

They continued to race down the hallway. The blue torches had extinguished, making it intensely hard for Skipper to see even a few feet in front of his face. He wasn't afraid of running into any walls, though; the hallway they were in was a straight shot to the antechamber, where the Sun and Sarge would both be. Occasionally, Skipper turned his head to make sure everyone was with him. He identified Manfredi's glowing red eye, Julien's white, striped tail, and Rico's white chest feathers. A little darkness wasn't going to prevent them from getting to Sarge.

It wasn't long until a glowing, orange light began to form at the end of the tunnel. Skipper immediately recognized it as the glow from the Sun. It was the same glow that he had worked so hard to hide on his way to return the sun back to this place. He pushed himself to run faster, feeling his heart rate accelerate to keep up with the exertion he was putting on his muscles. He began to distance himself from Rico and Julien a bit, but Manfredi managed to keep up. The antechamber came into more detailed few as they approached. Skipper recognized it as if he had just been here yesterday.

Eventually the glow began to reveal two figures standing in the opening of the chamber that was in front of the leader penguin. Skipper squinted and recognized them as Private and Marlene. What were they doing there, just standing around? Was Sarge even present anymore? Why weren't they being attacked, or more importantly, defending themselves?

They waved to Skipper, seeming oddly calm. Skipper felt a little suspicious about the scene, but continued running as hard as his short legs could carry him. He jumped forward, sliding on his belly to close the last few hundred feet between himself and his teammates in a second. Manfredi followed his gesture, and Skipper noted the grinding of his metal plates against the hard tile.

Right when he thought he had gotten to Marlene and Private safely, there was a sharp, "Now!" from his left. He whipped his head around to see who it was. Instead, his eyes were greeted with a flash of light so bright that he felt sharp pain shoot through them.

He lost his balance, rolling forward and flipping a few times from the momentum he had gained before sliding. When he finally came to a rest, he immediately rubbed his eyes. They were burning so badly from the flash that he didn't even notice his ears ringing or the smell of singed feathers. He let out a grunt of pain as he opened his eyes was only greeted by a painfully bright, pinkish hue. He closed them tightly again, wondering what it was that had blinded him.

Suddenly, he felt his flipper being wrenched away from his face. Unable to hear or see, the leader penguin merely flipped himself over defensively, feeling his foot land on something soft. He heard a grunt of pain and the grip on his flipper lighten suddenly as he landed on top of the unseen foe. It wasn't long until another force grabbed his other flipper, though, and they were forced behind his back. Skipper opened his eyes again, this time being greeted with a very blurry image of a penguin. He assumed it had been Sarge, and he tried to throw is flipper forward to punch him. He felt a sharp pain shoot through his arm as it didn't obey him, though, and he realized he was bound tightly with a rope.

He clenched his eyes tightly one last time, trying to blink the water that had formed in them as a result of the bright light. He shifted slightly in his place, trying to figure out where he was sitting. He felt a familiar coat of feathers behind his own, and could only assume he had been tied to Rico or Manfredi.

"Agh," came Julien's voice, "my eyes!"

"It'll go away in a few moments, don't worry," came Marlene's caring voice.

"Marlene? Marlene where are you?"

"I'm... I'm right, oof!" Skipper heard the pair topple to the ground, Julien presumably having crashed into the otter.

The noise was followed by some incoherent babbling from Rico. Skipper heard him grunt madly, hearing a slicing of air that could only have been him fighting with nothing, his vision and hearing impaired. That made Skipper conclude that he was tied to Manfredi, and not his weapons expert.

"Once again, Kowalski, you have shown your ability as a trustworthy ally," said a familiar, dark voice. It was Sargant Caspian Fishslader, and Skipper clenched his beak. He struggled against the restraints again momentarily, but realized it was no use. He still couldn't see and could hardly hear. What was going on?

"I'm not your ally," Kowalski said back, surprisingly angry. "We only have an agreement. Nothing more. Skipper and Manfredi are restrained now, so I suggest you take your Sun and go."

"Kowalski?" asked Skipper.

"I'm hear Skipper. Your vision should come back in a few moments. Until then, it is imperative that you relax," Kowalski said to him.

"Not my ally?" called Sarge. "Is that so? Then why did you require my help to restrain Skipper in the first place? He just landed a kick on you, didn't he?"

Skipper felt a sudden fear emerge from inside of him. Kowalski and Sarge were working together. The leader couldn't believe his ears.

"I did require help, yes," said Kowalski, "and I thank you for that. Now that they are restrained, however, I suggest you leave immediately."

"And miss all of the fun?" chuckled the evil penguin. "Are you not going to let me revel a little in my victory?"

Kowalski didn't respond, and instead Skipper felt another pair of flippers struggling with the ropes.

"Rico!" called Kowalski. "Don't free them."

The large penguin immediately froze. Skipper wondered why he was bound while the weapons expert was not. "_Why?_" he coughed.

"Trust me. I'll explain everything later."

"Rico," Skipper heard Manfredi whisper. The penguin near them shifted in place suddenly. "My knife must be laying on the floor nearby. Grab it and use it to cut the ropes," Manfredi instructed.

"_Uh-huh_," the penguin said back.

"Now, Kowalski," said Sarge, drawing Skipper's attention back to the task at hand. "You must realize that I can't simply leave my greatest enemies here without letting them at least know that I was the victor."

Skipper's vision had cleared a bit more and he was able to make out the penguins standing around him. Julien was leaned over into Marlene's arms, and they were both looking at Kowalski who was standing near Sarge, Gier, and Thurgo. Skipper couldn't believe his eyes—he had driven his strategist to aid the enemy. The tall penguin had tied him up with Sarge's help. Skipper cursed himself for falling into the trap so easily. Meanwhile, Sarge clutched a glowing red-orange cylinder in his hands. The Sun!

"How so?" Kowalski continued, crossing his flippers and furrowing his brow. "Our agreement pertained only to you retrieving the Sun while I kept Skipper and Manfredi away from you. Nothing else."

"Tsk, tsk," said Thurgo, who then laughed.

"You see, Kowalski," Sarge began, "the two penguins that you bound for me have caused me a lot of trouble in the past. They were the ones, along with their little friend, who blew up my base and killed my entire army. They murdered over three thousand penguins, did you know that?"

"Kowalski, don't listen to him," Skipper shouted suddenly, finding his voice again. "He's telling you lies! He was the one who killed those penguins!"

"Shut him up, Kowalski," ordered Sarge suddenly.

Kowalski froze on the spot, glancing towards Skipper. Skipper clenched his beak again, at the look the strategist gave him. It was the first exchange they had shared since Kowalski's abduction, and it was not a friendly one. Kowalski lowered his brow, and though the look seemed pleading enough, Skipper could see some anger underneath it.

"I was expecting you to slap him. You know, slapping is one of the greatest insults that you can give another penguin. That's why we always slapped the rookies back at training camp. Did Skipper ever slap you, Kowalski?" Sarge said to Kowalski. Skipper saw Kowalski rub the side of his face with his flipper, but immediately return it to his side.

"You know, your precious leader isn't any better than I am. I know you've heard of my atrocious _murders_. You know, I've really only killed one other penguin before. Skipper, on the other hand, has ended the lives of around three thousand by ripping the sun away from my base, causing it to explode."

"Three thousand misguided penguins that were fighting for _you_!" said Skipper. "They'd never have died if_ you_..." his voice trailed off as he felt a powerful slap travel across his face.

"Skipper, quiet... please," Kowalski mumbled to him.

Skipper lowered his brow at the intellectual. At this moment in time, the ranks that had been assigned to the quartet since they first assembled at the penguin HQ did not matter. Kowalski had openly slapped his superior, but Skipper was not mad. Kowalski was doing this because of what _he_ did—he could only blame himself.

"That's better," said Sarge, chuckling. "Good ol' slap. That always shuts up the mouthy ones. Didn't that feel good, Kowalski? Wouldn't you like to do it again?"  
Skipper felt himself tense up, expecting another hit to come. Surprisingly, it didn't the leader looked up to see Private holding back Kowalski. His flipper was visibly quivering.

"Stop it, Kowalski!" Private pleaded with him. "Hitting Skippah isn't accomplishing anything!"  
Kowalski glanced at him, but returned a heated stare at Skipper. Skipper couldn't help but avert his eyes. He was bound, and knew that there was nothing he could do right now. If he tried to speak again, Sarge would make Kowalski shut up him again. His first mate had been brainwashed somehow by the evil bird; tricked to believe that Skipper was his enemy. That, or the taller bird was putting on a really good act. Skipper hoped it was the latter.

"It feels good to strike someone who has caused you pain, doesn't it, Kowalski?" Sarge asked.

"No," Kowalski responded quickly. "Skipper has made some less than ideal decisions, yes, but I'd never strike him out of anger. I merely wish for him to remain quiet so you will leave sooner."

Sarge shrugged. "You know, I strongly disagree with you. Skipper has caused me a lot of pain... grieving over my lost soldiers..."

"You never grieved! You never even mourned. The moment you got out of the ruined base, you were seeking to obtain the Sun again!" Manfredi argued. Skipper was surprised he hadn't said a word so far.

"Kowalski, your associates test my patience," Sarge growled. Skipper flinched as Kowalski's flipper flew by his head and he heard it slap Manfredi across the face. Manfredi briefly struggled against the rope again, but stopped. "Good, good."

"Why are you still standing around?" Kowalski called to the leader. "Our agreement is over. You should leave."

"Our agreement is not over," Sarge said. "In fact, it is nearly void."

"What?" Kowalski gasped.

Suddenly, Geir cocked his rifle and pointed it a little ways over the top of Skipper's head. "Drop that knife," Sarge called. Skipper strained his neck and barely managed to see Rico drop Manfredi's knife to the ground, throwing his flippers up into the air. He took a few steps back before Gier lowered the rifle again.

"Be careful who you choose to work with, Kowalski. You're a very intelligent penguin. You'd do much better away from these fools. They still think they can stop me from keeping the Sun. You seem like the only one who realizes that its hopeless to try."

"Kowalski, don't listen to him!" Skipper felt himself blurt out, but wished he hadn't. Neither Sarge nor Kowalski seemed to react, though.

"You know, I think you'd make a good addition to my team. We could use your expertise in the future. Now that we have the Sun, we are going to need to defend it. You seem like someone who could build me another base. We could bring the world to its knees."

Kowalski crossed his flippers again, simply staring at the leader penguin with a blank expression his face. He briefly glanced at the animals standing around him. Private, Julien, Marlene, and Rico all gave him worried looks. Skipper couldn't imagine that the penguin was considering joining up with Sarge. Sarge was persuasive like that, though. That was probably how he got Edgar Blackbeak and all those three thousand penguins to work for him in the first place. Kowalski wouldn't fall into the same trap. Skipper knew he was too smart for that.

"Alright," said Kowalski.

Skipper felt his heart drop at the statement. "Kowalski, no!" he shouted in unison with Private, Rico and Marlene.

"The Sun interests me, yes. And past events have shown me that it is an acceptable act to run away from one's current team without saying goodbye, and without consequence." Skipper felt a lump get stuck in his throat as the intellectual spoke. "I will join you."

"You can't be serious Kowalski," Marlene said. She was still holding Julien close to herself. Surprisingly, the lemur's face expressed shock.

"I am, Marlene. Skipper doesn't care about us. He never did. The only reason you and the others got dragged into this is because Skipper knew he had no choice but to use your help. If he could have helped it, he would have came after Sarge alone. Maybe with Manfredi. Maybe without. He doesn't care about you, though. He'll abandon you immediately after this whole event is over, just like he did to us."

"Very good, Kowalski," said Sarge. "It is strange to see Skipper and Manfredi working together again after all these years. I thought for sure Skipper was going to leave that psycho behind, as well."

"Come on, then," said Kowalski. "We should leave." He waddled closer to his new team, and Skipper felt his flippers tense up as Kowalski walked near his enemy. The bird was throwing his life away—stabbing his leader in the back. He was going to be working for an evil cause. He knew that Kowalski wouldn't stand to try to take over the world, and Sarge would eventually kill him. The bird was intelligent, but he was walking into a trap! He was confused because of how Skipper had treated him!

"Kowalski, please," cried Skipper suddenly. He felt slightly weak as the words left him—a feeling he had not experienced in some time rising to the surface. Helplessness. "Don't do this. I know I made a huge mistake by leaving you men in the dark when I raced off. I should have told you were I was going and invited you to come with. Please, don't join with Sarge."

Kowalski stopped and turned to his ex-leader. He looked slightly confused, like he was musing over what his leader was saying. Skipper continued.

"Believe me, just this once. I will tell you everything when we get out of here, I promise!"

Kowalski shook his head slowly, and Skipper felt like he had been hit by a ton of bricks. The tall bird turned away from Skipper and lined up next to Thurgo, who elbowed him playfully. Kowalski didn't respond, and merely looked towards Skipper with, surprisingly, a slight tinge of sadness on his face.

"Welcome to the team, Kowalski," Sarge smirked. Kowalski didn't look at him, keeping his eyes focused on his ex-leader. Skipper felt his gaze burn deep into him. It made him avoid the strategist's gaze and made him want to cry.

His eyes fell on Private, who seemed to be quivering. His eyes were were glazed over with tears and his flippers were balled in front of his face. He looked over towards Marlene and Julien. When he had gotten their attention he signaled them by nodding his head towards Sarge. Marlene nodded, and following her lead, Julien did as well. Then Private glanced towards Rico, who returned the gesture. They were going to strike!

"Let's go," Kowalski said dimly. He lowered his head slightly as he began walking towards the exit of the antechamber.

"One last thing," said Sarge. Kowalski froze in his tracks.

"What now?" he responded.

"I never really got a chance to prove to my enemies my victory," Sarge explained.

Kowalski blinked as Sarge raised his right flipper into the air. Simultaneously, Gier's raised the barrel of his penguin rifle. The end of it was directed towards Skipper and Manfredi. Softly, the rock-hopper clicked the gun's mechanism, pushing a bullet into the chamber.

"See if you can get both of them with one bullet," whispered Sarge. Skipper and Manfredi began struggling against their restraints immediately, knowing that they were lined up in such a way that a bullet traveling through Skipper's head would also travel through Manfredi's.

As Skipper struggled, he thought back to Kowalski. Was this the end? Was Kowalski just going to let him die like this? He thought of the others—how he had told them everything. The Penguin City, the temple, the Penguin Army... everything. If only Kowalski had been there. Then none of this would be happening.

Surprisingly, Kowalski shouted "No!" as Sarge prepared to lower his flipper. Skipper knew the action would mean Gier would pull the trigger on the rifle, bringing the end of his life.

"Go, now!" he heard Private cry from his left. His heart skipped a beat as he saw the four animals near him charge towards Sarge at full speed.

* * *

**~Author's Note**: Day 9. The action begins. What will happen next?


	53. Struggle

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 53 – Struggle**

**THE RIFLE CLATTERED TO THE GROUND**.

Moments ago, Skipper had though he was a goner. Now, however, the rifle that had been pointed directly at him and the penguin that had been holding it were laying on the floor. Nearby, Private gracefully landed, breathing heavy. Skipper had never seen such a powerful kick from the small Penguin. Gier had been backed back a few dozen feet and seemed to be completely unconscious.

Skipper was glad, the small bird had acted, though. He knew Kowalski wouldn't have stopped the hammer from falling, sending the lead spiraling into his head. Private smiled slightly at his accomplishment before he was bludgeoned over the back of his own head by an enraged Thurgo. The small bird spun a bit before falling off of the raised platform. He hopped up immediately, but still looked dazed.

Meanwhile, Julien, Marlene, and Rico had hopped onto the platform and were now lined up across from Thurgo and Sarge. They all had angry looks on their faces. Skipper pulled against the ropes, knowing he should be up on that platform with them. It was no use, however; the ropes were far too tight. Suddenly, Manfredi elbowed him from behind.

Skipper craned his head to look at the robot-bird behind him. He saw Manfredi gesture to his knife, which was laying a short way away from the pair. Then, he put all his momentum into rocking them in that direction. Skipper got the cue and began throwing his own weight towards the knife. They scooted forward, if only a few inches.

* * *

"This place is about to turn into a battlefield!" exclaimed Andrew under his breath. He was peaking out from behind the pillar, wide-eyed with suspense.

Alice felt her own heart rate rise a bit as her birds, otter, and lemur lined up across from the evil penguins. They were about to fight—and she wasn't sure all of them would survive it.

"They need our help," she concluded. As she tried to move out from behind the pillar, Andrew forced her back. She hit the wall behind her as the businessman gave her a concerned look.

"You can't go charging in there!" he complained, "You'll get slaughtered just like Issac!"

"Then what's stopping my animals from meeting the same end?" she questioned him, lowering her brow angrily.

The man paused for a moment. "You're right," he said, "we need to do something. But what?"

Alice thought about the statement as Andrew released her and peaked back around the archway. She followed his gaze and noticed the two bound penguins sitting in the entrance of the antechamber, inching closer to a knife that lay not far from them. She gripped the handle of her net gun tighter as she prepared to help them.

* * *

Marlene looked at the two birds lined up across from her. She had never been so scared in her life. Sarge looked angry and Thurgo glared at her with what could only be blood lust. There was no other way, though. She knew it had to come to this. She prepared to defend herself as Thurgo took a step closer to her.

Surprisingly, Kowalski appeared, holding the large penguin back. "Stop, stop!" he shouted. Thurgo froze, looking at the intellectual. "Touching them means that I'll have no choice but to help defend them. They're still my old..."

Kowalski was interrupted by a powerful fist contacting with his face. Thurgo grunted as the intellectual released his grip. "I don't know Sarge. He whines a lot," he said, turning to his leader.

"They all do," he agreed, still clutching the Sun in his flippers. "Kill them all."

Marlene's heart skipped a beat at the statement. Kowalski grimaced from the floor.

"Aw, I quite liked Kowalski," laughed Thurgo.

Sarge turned to Gier, who was slowly picking himself off the black tile, and asked, "Are you alright?"  
The small rock-hopper nodded. He hopped up immediately after, standing in formation next to Sarge. He didn't seem to bother with his rifle, but Marlene knew that he was more than capable without it. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw the glint of a pocket knife in his flipper—the same one that he had used to almost kill her.

Meanwhile, Private had recovered from Thurgo's powerful blow. He hopped up onto the platform behind Sarge, Thurgo, and Gier. They seemed to have forgotten about him entirely, and he quietly took advantage of the situation. Undetected, he landed a powerful kick to Sarge's backside, sending the Sun spiraling out of his flippers. It clinked on the ground, rolling a few feet away from him as he stumbled. Marlene took it as an opportunity to strike. The other animals agreed and they went forward to engage the enemies in front of them.

Splitting up, They took on different targets. Thurgo had spun around to engage Private, but was caught off guard when Rico landed a blow on the back of his head. Julien charged directly for Sarge, who though he had been kicked off balance, was prepared for the lemur. Marlene found herself across from the deranged rock-hopper, wondering where Kowalski was.

The penguin pushed forward quickly. Marlene hardly had time to think before he thrust the blade of the knife forward. Marlene jumped back quickly, distancing herself from the bird. She hadn't been prepared to fight against an armed opponent, and knew it would end badly.

* * *

"Almost got you," the redhead said, picking up the crooked dagger not far from Manfredi's grasp.

The robotic penguin looked up to her as she knelt down and began working on the ropes that bound the two penguins together. Manfredi didn't recognize the human, but from Skipper's thankful look, he knew that she was here to help them. He briefly wondered how she had followed them there.

The woman struggled to cut the ropes. They were thick and coated in plastic, so she could barely get them to break with such a flimsy dagger. Gradually they snapped though, one by one. She smiled as each one snapped. Eventually, Manfredi was able to get a flipper free. He used it to slide the rest of the ropes off of his body, and he was free.

He glanced up at the woman who was still holding his knife. She noticed him, and set it down near him. Then she took up her net gun and got ready to charge into the fray. Manfredi directed his attention towards the fight that was going on in the middle of the room. Skipper was already racing towards the scene, his flippers balled into tight fists.

* * *

Marlene was struggling. She thought it was incredible that she had avoided the rock-hopper's blade so far, but she had found no opportunity to disarm him or counterattack. She continued dodging his quick stabs and slashes, though she was getting pushed further and further back. Occasionally she glanced at how the others were doing, and she was not happy with what she saw.

Thurgo had somehow managed to overpower Private, and he was laying on the cold tile. He slowly began to pick himself up, but he seemed dazed. He must have been hit with another powerful blow and Marlene didn't know how much more the small bird could take. Now Thurgo was focusing all of energy on Rico. Rico was blocking all of the blows with ease, but like Marlene, was not able to counter at all. As Marlene glanced in his direction one more time, she witnessed him take a powerful chop to the stomach, followed with a bone crushing uppercut. The move forced him to cough up a few tools, and he fell to his knees in pain.

Julien, meanwhile, had not been a match for Sarge. The evil leader did not even attempt to pick up the sun, and instead it illuminated his twisted face from where it rested on the ground. Julien seemed like he had the upper hand in the beginning, but was now rolling on the ground in agony. Sarge had managed to hit him with a roundhouse, and sent him flying a few feet away. Julien coughed for air as he clutched his gut.

The question she had was, where was Kowalski through all of this? She couldn't see him anywhere, and they were getting destroyed. Her question was answered as the tall penguin launched himself from behind her, tackling Gier to the ground. The knife bounced out of his flipper. Gier managed to grab Kowalski and bounce the penguin off of himself and was back on his feet in a matter of seconds.

Marlene didn't waste any time, though, and charged forward to attack Sarge before he had a chance to finish off Julien. She tried to remember all of the training the penguins had given her as she swung her fists furiously. In her mind, she heard Private's voice telling her to duck, jump, and dodge when she saw the signs of certain attacks coming. Eventually she managed to stick the leader penguin directly in his face. She had put all of her might behind the punch, and she felt sharp pains travel up her arm as her paw contacted with the penguin's beak. Sarge spun around by the force as Marlene grabbed her arm, grunting from the pain. Julien had gotten back on his feet in the meantime and was now standing beside her, breathing heavily.

Thurgo had been busy fighting off Private again. The small bird was determined, and with a shrill cry, hopped from the higher platform onto the larger penguin's back. Then, using his flippers to block the penguin's eyes, he held on for dear life as Thurgo tried to yank him off. Rico, though he was still struggling to regain his breath, had found time to pick up the hammer he had regurgitated. Using Private's distraction he cracked Thurgo across the side of his face with it. Private let go of the bird at that time, and rolled safely when he hit the ground. The large bird didn't fall, but clutched his beak, grunting in agony. Rico smiled, grasping the handle of the hammer harder.

Sarge was quickly approaching Marlene and Julien again. Marlene thought for sure that her paw was broken from the force she had applied to the punch, but Sarge did not seem phased. He smiled slightly before charging quickly at the otter. Julien stepped in front of her just in time to accept the business end of his webbed foot. Marlene heard a sickening sound of what she thought was crunching bone as Julien was sent spinning several feet to the left. He didn't move after he crashed into the ground—didn't even twitch.

"No!" cried Marlene, hoping that he was alright. When he didn't move, she tried to race to him.

Gier had other plans for her, though. He he had landed a chop on Kowalski hard enough to get him to gasp for breath as he retook his pocket knife. Marlene gasped as she felt his flippers slide under her arms and around her neck. The next thing she felt was the icy cold kiss of the knife against her windpipe.

This was it, she thought. This time, Gier didn't have to wait for a signal. As soon as he found the strength, he was going to slide the cold steel right across her soft flesh. Then, her life-giving blood would spill onto the tile and she would be no more. Her eyes briefly flashed to Julien, unconscious on the floor. Or maybe he was even dead. Dead defending her. She felt adrenaline pour into her veins suddenly, and her breathing became very choppy.

It wasn't going to end here. Not now. Julien wasn't going to sacrifice himself for her. Crying out in fear and rage suddenly, she forced her head back with all of her might. It crashed into Gier's skull, and she felt his grip lighten, the knife no longer in a threatening position. Then, using her new position as leverage, she forced her elbow up into the rock-hopper's diaphragm. Just like Rico had showed her.

The penguin stumbled back, coughing. Marlene felt a new feeling race though her arms and legs as she felt empowered by forcing the death-bringing bird off of herself. It was a familiar feeling, one that she would normally be terrified of. Now, however, she let her confidence take over her body as her vision faded into nothingness.

She ran her tongue over her teeth before she charged at Sarge.

* * *

Skipper had finally reached the group with Manfredi. Alice was nearby, he knew, but she was staying out of sight. He knew she was probably afraid of the Sun, but was glad to have her along. He jumped onto the platform, scanning around.

His eyes fell onto Marlene, who was pummeling Sarge. The penguin moved as fast as he could to block all of her blows, claws, and bites. She was blisteringly fast, though, and from what Skipper could tell, extremely powerful. By her savage cries and grunts as she swung, Skipper knew she had lost it. Her eyes were glazed over in fury and her muscles seemed to have increased in size. Skipper didn't know what had set her off now, of all times, but he was happy she was forcing Sarge back.

He redirected his attention at Thurgo, who now had a massive split down the center of his beak. He used his flipper to realign the bottom half with a sickening crunch. Looking madder than ever, he charged at Rico. Rico was unprepared for the sudden action, and raised his flippers above his head in defense. Skipper was already there, though, and managed to kick the large penguin off balance before his blow could reach the weapons specialist.

Thurgo stumbled back and then tripped over his backpack. Skipper grimaced as he smiled slightly, digging through it as fast as he could. He produced the small, black device Skipper had seen on the dock. The tazor! It clicked as he pressed the trigger, electricity jumping between the two diodes.

Rico didn't notice his new weapon, though, and tried to swing the hammer again. He swung high, though and Thurgo ducked. He spun out from underneath the large bird's attack. Using the moment, he jabbed the tazor directly up into Rico's gut. Rico froze, looking terrified. As soon as he did that, though, he fell into a great seizure as electricity surged through his flippers and feet. After a few seconds he collapsed. His eyes rolled up into his head as he fell completely still.

"No!" shouted Skipper, charging for Thurgo.

The penguin was already prepared for him, though, and had readied the tazor for another jab. Skipper saw the move coming and kicked himself forward off of his front foot, front flipping over the sparking electricity. Thurgo looked surprised as Skipper's foot plowed directly into his chest, knocking him back a few feet. The flat-headed penguin landed on the ground, rolling several feet away.

* * *

Manfredi had raced towards Sarge, grasping the the handle of his dagger tightly in his robotic flipper. He was so close to his target now, only a few feet away. Marlene was obliterating the bird, though, and he expressed slight fear as the enraged otter slammed her paw across his face. He stumbled backwards and looked up again just in time to receive a roundhouse kick from the otter, toppling him entirely.

Manfredi knew this was his chance. Sarge was laying on the ground, dazed. He was weakened by Marlene, and Manfredi could see several small gashes bleeding on his flippers and face from Marlene's claws and teeth. He was dazed, but was already trying to push himself onto his feet again. Manfredi wasted no time and jumped on top of the penguin, using his body mass to force him to the ground again.

Sarge was surprised for a moment as he Manfredi glared down at him. His face was in the shadow of the light from the Sun, and only the glow from Manfredi's red eye illuminated it. The robotic-penguin raised his dagger high into the air above the penguin. He was ready to crash it down into the maniacal penguin's heart. He had been ready for the last two years. It was finally happening, though. Manfredi was about to end all of his pain.

Suddenly, Sarge let out a hoarse chuckle that turned into a deep laugh. Manfredi found himself unable to force the dagger down, and merely left it hanging in the air over the penguin's chest. Why was the bird laughing? Sarge's beak turned into a wide smile.

"You're really determined, you know that, Manfredi?" He said, before chuckling again. "You've dedicated your entirely life for the last two years to hunt me down and kill me. And here you are, about to do it."

Manfredi furrowed his brow. For the last two years he had dreamed every night about crashing the dagger through the bird's chest, but now his words enveloped the cyborg.

"There's something tragic about all of this, though. Killing me won't accomplish a single thing. It's not going to bring back Sarah or your kid. They'll still be dead. So will Johnson."

Manfredi found it hard to breathe suddenly. His breaths came short and choppily. The evil bird's words rang true. Manfredi had merely hoped that killing Caspian, gaining revenge on the one that took everything from him, one make up for the choices he had made in the past. Manfredi felt himself unsure for a short while, but it was all Sarge needed.

Using Manfredi's confusion, he flipped the robotic-penguin off of himself. Through the move, and fluently, he wrenched the dagger out of the penguin's flipper. Manfredi fell face first into the tile, unsure of what had just happened. He was dazed as Marlene charged Sarge again. However, this time Sarge was armed.

* * *

Skipper disengaged from Thurgo after what had been an intense exchange of blows. Skipper felt knots form where he had received the bird's powerful punches, but knew he had done an equal amount of damage.

The important thing now was that the tazor laid on the ground some distance from the fight. Skipper had managed to slap it out of the larger penguin's flipper, but in the act Thurgo had managed to wrench Skipper's flipper, and it was now intensely painful to move. He'd have to do without it, he though, as Thurgo charged towards him again.

Suddenly, the large penguin was knocked to the ground as Private caught him off guard. Taking advantage of the higher platform, he had hit the large penguin with a powerful flying kick, and Thurgo toppled. Private was on top of him in a heartbeat, pummeling his face with chops and punches.

Skipper heard a click from behind him suddenly, and turned around just in time to see Gier pull the trigger. He had completely forgotten about the rock-hopper, and was just able to duck underneath the lead slug that whizzed by his head. He grunted in pain as he landed on his disabled flipper. The bullet ricocheted off the tile behind Skipper, thankfully missing Private.

Gier wasn't done, though. He pushed another bullet into the chamber and got ready to fire again. Behind him, Skipper saw Kowalski get ready to pounce. The tall bird landed on the rock-hopper moments before he could line up his shot again, and the next bullet bounced off the tile right in front of Skipper's face. Kowalski wasted no time and began landing hits on Gier's face and body while he was down, in much the same fashion Private was.

Skipper thought they had the upper hand for a moment until he heard a shrill cry from his right. He whipped around and saw Marlene on her knees, grasping her arm. Scarlet liquid forced its way out from underneath her paw as Skipper saw Manfredi's crooked dagger Sarge's flipper. Marlene's eyes were no longer glazed over, and Skipper knew she was no longer in her crazed state.

He lurched forward as he saw Sarge prepare to strike her again with the knife. The leader penguin knew that he was lucky to knick Marlene with the switchblade and this time the blow was meant to kill. He lunged forward with all of his might, but knew he wouldn't get there in time. That was until a heavy net landed on top of Sarge. In the distance Skipper saw Alice shoot her fist into the air, cheering.

* * *

Manfredi was left in a daze, face down on the tile. It wasn't until Private landed near him, thrown off of Thurgo, that he looked up. Private's face was bloodied and his feathers were ruffled. He looked back at the robotic penguin, expressing anger.

"What are you doing? We need you, Manfredi!" he shouted, pushing himself up and charging back towards Thurgo who was forcing Kowalski off of Gier.

* * *

Manfredi pushed himself up onto his feet again and glanced around him. Maybe killing Sarge wasn't going to bring back Sarah. Maybe it wasn't going to bring back Johnson. Maybe it wouldn't fix any of Manfredi's sins. He knew however, stopping Sarch and his henchmen would prevent them from hurting any more of the animals around him. He charged after Private, ready to help defend Kowalski from Thurgo and Gier.

Marlene blinked a few times. She brought her paw closer to her eyes and gasped as she saw the blood that was soaking into her fur. The pain had not quite hit her yet, and she wasn't sure where she had been cut. All she knew was that Sarge was now trapped under a net and was furiously trying to cut his way out of it. She was thankful for it, as she was sure Sarge would have ended her if he had any opportunity.

She felt something begin dragging her away from the trapped Sarge.

"Skipper?" she asked as she looked up.

"I've got you, Marlene," said Julien, though his voice sounded distorted. Marlene was surprised to see his face when she looked up. His snout was crooked now, obviously broken from Sarge's kick.

"You're alive!" she said, relieved.

"Yes," Julien mumbled. Marlene grimaced as blood dripped out of his mouth and down his chest as he spoke. "We are to be getting out of here. C'mon!"

He tried to force Marlene to her feet. Marlene struggled with her arm now slashed open, but she managed to stand. She suddenly felt all of the burning welts that lined her body from where Sarge had struck her. She turned to the lemur. His looked pale with fear as blood slowly dripped out of his nose.

"I'm not going anywhere," Marlene argued, suddenly.

"We are going to be killed!" shouted Julien, trying to pull her away.

"And if we don't keep fighting, Private, Skipper, Rico, and Manfredi will too!" Marlene shouted, throwing the lemur's arms off.

"Marlene, please," begged Julien, trying to find a way to get her to run away with him.

"No!" Marlene shouted.

Julien expressed a terrified look as he pushed Marlene's shoulders, forcing her to the ground. Marlene gasped in horror as the hammer clobbered him across his already broken snout. He fell in much the same way as he had before, not moving. Marlene was horrified—there was little chance he could have survived two massive cranial blows like that.

Marlene turned to see Thurgo laughing. His dislocated beak clicked oddly as he did so. Gier was also smiling, crossing his flippers. Near him, Kowalski and Skipper were laying on the ground. They were moving, but only sightly. She heard Kowalski emit a low groan. Marlene could only assume that Thurgo managed to land a few hits on them with the hammer.

* * *

Manfredi charged full force at Thurgo, landing on top of him. He found all of the strength in his flippers and smashed the bird's head into the hard tile. He smiled slightly as Thurgo's eyes rolled up into his head. He was either unconscious or dead. Manfredi had to make sure he was dead, though. He couldn't risk the bird taking up a weapon striking the others again.

Thurgo's cracked beak whistled slightly as he emitted a low gurgling noise. Manfredi wasn't done, though. He quickly smashed the bird's head into the tiles again. They shattered underneath the birds head, and he witnessed as blood began to pour out of the bird's broken beak.

Manfredi had killed Thurgo. Manfredi felt a slight ping of regret as he realized Thurgo was only following Sarge's orders. He had been brainwashed by the psychotic penguin. He had been like any one of those three thousand that made up the Penguin Army. He had been like Johnson—like himself.

Manfredi had no time to sulk, however, as he was knocked sideways by Private. The small bird had engaged the rock-hopper, and had been tossed sideways into Manfredi. Manfredi lifted himself up, pulling Private up with him. He glanced down at the small penguin, his face was screwed up with determination. He was breathing heavily and Manfredi could tell he was exhausted.

Gier went for his rifle, but Skipper found the strength to kick it away. Manfredi bolted towards the small rock-hopper, causing him to retreat back to his leader. The two stood across the platform from Manfredi and Private. Oddly enough, neither of them raised their flippers to continue fighting.

* * *

Skipper's head was pounding and his vision was blurry as he tried to wipe the water-filled eyes. The hammer had knocked him fully unconscious for a few moments, but now he was back. From what he could tell he had been struck somewhere across the back of his head, but he wasn't sure. His head was spinning.

He tried to lift himself up off of the tiles, but his weakened flipper gave out and he fell back down. Instead, he rolled on his back. Next to him was Kowalski. His chest rose and fell heavily with his breath, but other than that he seemed to be entirely unconscious. Over him Skipper saw Manfredi and Private side-by-side. Across from them, Sarge and Gier were lined up. Sarge tossed the bloodied knife gently back and forth between his flippers. Between them was the Sun, casting its strange orange glow. It gave the four penguins in the middle of the room elongated shadows, making them look like four giants that were squaring off.

Skipper glanced around the room. Julien was laying on the tile, unmoving. Blood poured out of his mouth and onto the floor. Marlene was over him, clutching her arm. Her left eye had swollen up, and looked like it was almost completely closed. Rico was still laying where the tazor had dropped him. He hadn't moved an inch, and Skipper feared that he hadn't survived the massive shock. He saw Alice move closer, crouched behind the edge of the raised platform.

His eyes fell on Thurgo. It was a gruesome sight. The Penguin's beak was mangled, and his head was embedded a few inches into the tile below him. A pool of scarlet blood had begun to form underneath him, and Skipper knew that he was dead. Manfredi had killed him.

All that was left were the four penguins standing across from each other now. Private and Manfredi's eyes darted between Sarge and Gier. Sarge and Geir's eyes darted between the other two penguins and the Sun. Skipper struggled to pull himself up again, but found himself too weak.

Suddenly, Sarge began clapping. It was a very slow, very insulting gesture. "Very good," he began.

* * *

**~Author's Note:** Day 10. Only one day left 'till my marathon is over, can you believe it?

Hope you're enjoying all of the action. I know I am. And don't worry, the fighting will be mostly over by tomorrow. I'll be uploading the entire resolution over the course of March, though.


	54. End

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 54 – End**

**SARGE SMILED AS HE CLAPPED.**

The penguin's feathers was dotted in places with blood. Some of it was his own, some of it was Marlene's. His feathers were messed up and missing in several places. Still, he radiated fear and confidence as he smiled. Manfredi scowled.

"Yes, you have done a very good job, you two," Sarge said.

"We're not done yet!" cried Private. Manfredi could see patches of feathers missing on his body, too, but for the most part he was unharmed.

"I knew you'd say that," returned the blind-eyed penguin. "You're name is Private, isn't it?"

Private clenched his beak, tightening his flippers into fists.

"You're very brave, you know that? Standing up to us like this. Trying to stop me from getting the Sun. I hope you don't you mind that it's all pointless. I'm going to kill you like the others."

"Shut up!" the small bird called. "You haven't killed anyone. They're all fine. Except for your henchman, though. He's not looking too good."

Sarge glanced at Thurgo. He didn't even grimace as he looked at the mangled bird. "Pity," he said. "He was a very loyal soldier. Far more loyal than Kowalski... or for that matter, any of your friends."

"Kowalski's plan was never to turn on us," argued Private. "He only wanted to get you to leave and take the Sun so that we wouldn't be harmed. He was only trying to protect us! He was going to run away from you as soon as you left Antarctica!"

"So that makes him a coward and a liar. Too scared to stand up to us or tell the truth. He's weak, like you."

Manfredi locked his knees as he moved into his fighting position, getting ready to assault the two birds across from him. Sarge noticed his move and merely tossed the knife from one flipper to the other again. He didn't seem intimidated in the slightest.

"You know, Manfredi," he said. "I offered Johnson the option of joining up with me. I told him that if he did, I wouldn't kill him. He didn't though. He was loyal to you and Skipper. That was why I stabbed him with this."

Manfredi found himself unable to take his eyes off of his target. He was mocking him with the knife—his weapon. The item that symbolized everything and everyone had been fighting for. Johnson, Sarah, his child. It symbolized more now. Skipper, Private, and the others. The Sun, the redheaded woman, the entire world. Edgar. It didn't belong in Sarge's flippers.

Sarge glanced towards Private. "I'll offer you the same thing I did Johnson," he explained with a businesslike tone. "Join up with me, and I'll spare your lives. I'll spare all of your friend's lives, as well. All you have to do is help me kill Manfredi. I know you think he is as insane as I do. We both agree that the world would be a better place without him."

Manfredi exchanged a brief glance with Private. His eyes were narrowed, full of rage and hate. Manfredi couldn't tell if it was directed at himself or the small bird, though. Suddenly the hatred was replaced with something else, something like realization. The small bird turned to Sarge, lowering his flippers slightly.

"I understand now," he said, calmly. "You're the weak one."

Sarge looked confused at this. A brief moment of silence passed between the group, filled only with the shuffling of the injured animals that littered the platform around the four in the center. Manfredi took in every bit of peace that he could.

"You're nothing alone. You're just another penguin, as mortal as Manfredi or I. You'd never be able to get the Sun alone. You couldn't even navigate here without Kowalski's help. So you spend your time convincing innocent penguins to join your cause. To help fight for you when you don't give a bloody care about who they are, where they came from or what their life means. Once they've committed themselves to you, they're just another soldier.

"You never cared about Johnson, Manfredi, Kowalski, or any of those three thousand that died that day. You're only concerned about yourself, and you see that you're only a penguin. You want power, but you can't gain it alone. In fact, you're so power hungry that you go to the extreme of murdering innocent animals to get what you want. They don't mean anything to you. Just barriers standing in your way.

"You're the weak one. Not us."

Private paused for a moment, shaking his head slowly. "I'm not going to join with you. You'd just throw me aside like you did with Kowalski. You'd forget about me the moment I died like you did with Thurgo. You'd stab me in the back if you needed to, like Johnson. I'll never join you. I'll never help you take over the world with the Sun. And most of all, I won't help you kill Manfredi. In fact, I'm going to help him get what he came here to do. I'm going to help _kill you_."

The last two words rolled off the penguin's tongue darkly. Manfredi glanced at the younger penguin, who was looking up to him. His eyes looked determined, hopeful, and proud. The large bird nodded to the smaller one, mouthing, 'Thank you." The small bird nodded back, then again prepared himself for the fight that was about to happen.

"You'd die for a madman like Manfredi? Someone who's entire goal in life is to murder another penguin?" Sarge argued. He seemed shaken by Private's speech, but only slightly.

"Manfredi's not a madman. He was a good penguin before you ordered your men to slaughter his family. Before you bloody killed his best friend in cold blood. He might only wish to kill you, but its not going to be murder. I've learned something through all of this, and that's that killing isn't always murder. Some people _deserve_ to die."

Sarge was now clenching his flippers tightly around the handle of the dagger, quivering. He looked darkly at Private before turning to Gier, his last remaining teammate. Surprisingly, the rock-hopper expressed uncertainty back towards his leader. Shaking slightly, the rock-hopper took a step away from Sarge.

"Gier? What are you doing?" Sarge cried.

The mute rock-hopper threw his flippers up before nodding his head to Private and Manfredi. Then he walked up to Private, offering his flipper. The two small birds exchanged a slow handshake. Gier's beak pulled into a small smile as he signaled that he was going to help them.

"Thank you," Private muttered, surprised.

Manfredi wasn't expecting the act, either. He only nodded as Gier glanced in his direction. Somehow, Private's speech had convinced the soldier that helping Sarge any longer was helpless. Manfredi wished that he could have done the same thing, those two long years ago in the communication room of the penguin.

Manfredi couldn't shake a strange feeling that overtook him, though. Gier had witnessed Manfredi pummel his teammate into the ground. Manfredi had not given Thurgo any mercy when he had slammed the bird into the tiles. Why would Gier help him after he had killed his friend?

"It looks like you're out of options," Private said to Sarge, darkly. "It seems that Manfredi will achieve his goal, after all."  
Sarge's eyes bounced between the three penguins standing across from him. Manfredi knew what he was thinking as his eyes landed on the Sun which was still laying on the ground between them. He remembered that massive ball of energy that had traveled down the tunnel. He saw the smoldering clothes heap that had once been a living human being.

Manfredi lunged forward at the exactly moment Sarge did. They landed near the Sun Simultaneously, their flippers vying for supremacy. Sarge still had the knife, though, and he dug it into Manfredi's organic flipper as the fought. Manfredi pulled it back, feeling the intense pain that traveled into his body. Sarge pulled the Sun into his flippers because of this. He pushed himself onto his feet and somersaulted back out of the reach of a grasping Private. He threatened Gier, who was fast approaching him, with the knife. The rock-hopper backed off a bit.

From the glow of the Sun, Manfredi suddenly noticed Skipper trying to signal him, waving his flipper in the air. He had pushed the gauss rifle as close as he could, dragging himself across the tile to push it closer. The weapon glinted in the light as Manfredi raced to pick it up.

"It seems that I now have both Manfredi's knife and the Sun," Sarge said. His voice quavered on the edge of what could be insanity. "Both of the weapons that mean something. You must realize that continued fighting is pointless!"

"I will fight for what I believe in until either I'm dead or those I care about are safe," answered Private confidently.

Meanwhile, Manfredi reached the gauss rifle in his flippers. He hadn't held one of these in a long time, but he grasped its warm, wooden stock like he had never forgotten how to use it. He knew what he had to do. He rolled a short distance away from Skipper and the others, before bringing the butt of the gun to his shoulder, peering down the sight.

He knew what had to be done. He lined up the gun's sight with Sarge's head, prepared to pull the trigger. His heart raced as he slowly depressed the trigger, waiting for the recoil that signaled the shot had been fired. The lead was going to slice through the air and pierce Sarge's skull. It was all about to be over.

Sarge noticed him lining up his shot, however. A grin of insanity formed on his face as he quickly twisted the canister the Sun was in open. Before Manfredi had a chance to activate the firing mechanism, a white-hot ball of energy emerged from the Penguin. He became blinded by the pure-white light making its way towards him, but pulled the trigger anyway. He was unsure if his bullet had even made it through the ball of energy as he watched it get dangerously close.

Suddenly, with a shrill cry, he was knocked out of the way of the death-ball. He slammed into the tiles hard as the energy grazed his side. He looked up just in time to see Private's form get entirely engulfed by the ball of energy. His body turned into nothing more than a silhouette as the massive energy mass passed through him. He had a terrified look on his face before the Sun's energy blocked Manfredi's vision of him entirely.

"No, Private!" Manfredi hear Skipper shout. "Private!"

Manfredi used his flippers to push himself back from the searing mass of energy as he watched it pour from Sarge's canister. Moments later, Sarge twisted the container shut again, stopping the flow of energy. Manfredi prepared for the worst. He expected Private to be vaporized entirely. Nothing more than thin air at this point.

As the energy left the room, though, all of the animals gasped. Private was standing strongly, shielding his face from previously bright white light. He was still there! The force of the energy had pushed him back a few feet, but he was still standing there!

Everything was not so good, though. Private lowered his flippers, glancing at them. It was like he, too, found it unreal that he was still in the real world. He smiled slightly before his eyes rolled back into his head. He fell to his knees and then flat on his face on the cold tile. Manfredi couldn't believe it. The Penguin had managed to withstand the energy that the human man could not, but it had still been too much.

The bird had saved his life, and sacrificed his own in the act. Manfredi felt a tear come to his eye, but he blinked it away. Now was not the time to mourn. He had been mourning for the last two years. Private had sacrificed himself so that he could complete his mission. So he could kill his target.

Manfredi turned to Sarge, who was now cackling like a madman. He lowered his brow, narrowing his eyes at the insane bird. He was going to make sure Private's death had not been in vain. Sarge had just killed another innocent bird, and Manfredi was going to be sure to make him pay.

Gier had just the same thing in mind. The small bird already charged at Sarge, trying to knock the Sun out of his flippers. He was swinging his own flippers insanely fast, but Sarge was still armed with the crooked dagger. Using it to defend himself more than attack, he eventually found the opening to whack his former teammate across the side of his face with the canister. Manfredi raced forward as he landed hard on the ground, determined to get there in time to help him.

He was too late, though. Sarge slammed the dagger down, driving directly into the rock-hopper's foot. He slammed it hard enough to be come embedded into the tiles below the bird's foot. Gier grimaced with pain as the knife penetrated his foot. He immediately struggled to pull himself away but was locked in place, the dagger acting like a nail.

"I'll deal with you later," Sarge told him. His sounded demented now, his voice cracking. Nonetheless, he turned to Manfredi just in time to block a powerful chop directed at his neck.

Manfredi wasted no time. He immediately used his other flipper to try to chop Sarge in the gut, but the bird used the canister to deflect the penguin's blow. Then, using Manfredi's own momentum, spun him around. Manfredi was forced into the ground, sliding a few feet. Sarge slammed his foot onto the penguin's back. Manfredi cringed with pain as he felt the air get forced out of his lungs.

"Your friend was fool, Manfredi," Sarge told him. "I'm not the weak one. I am powerful, more powerful than any penguin before me. With the Sun, I am unstoppable. I don't _need_ anyone. The only thing I _need_ is you to be dead. I'm going to enjoy this."

Manfredi looked above him to see Sarge ready to twist the Sun open again. Manfredi was unsure what it would be like to be engulfed in the massive ball of energy, but he knew it couldn't happen now.

Suddenly, Sarge grunted in pain as he was struck across the face. Manfredi immediately rolled and got up when he felt the pressure removed from his back. Nearby him was Skipper, clutching the hammer in his disabled wing. His other rubbed his shoulder, his face expressing great pain.

"Don't let him win, Manfredi. You can't. We're all counting on you," Skipper told him.

Gier whistled suddenly, making Manfredi turn. The rock-hopper had pried the knife out of his foot and had slid it across the floor to the robotic-penguin. Manfredi picked it up and felt the familiar wood between his feathers once again. It was now tainted with more blood than just Johnson's.

Sarge had recovered from being struck and knocked Skipper over with a powerful hit from the Sun's container. He chuckled as Skipper landed on the ground, exhausted. The flat-headed penguin inched himself away from Sarge, but the blind-eyed penguin directed himself towards Manfredi anyway.

"I don't understand why you continue fighting. I've got the Sun. You've just witnessed it end the life of your little friend over there, and yet you _continue_ to fight. Why?"

Manfredi held the handle of the dagger close to his heart, looking down at the ground. Slowly, he brought his eyes up to Sarge and saw him holding the Sun, ready to use its power as many times as he needed.

"I fight for many things, Caspian. I began this fight for Sarah, Johnson, and my child I will never meet. It's changed, though, and revenge isn't my priority any more. Now, I only care about ending your life."  
With that, Manfredi charged. Sarge struggled to open the container again, and was too late. Manfredi moved quickly and used the handle of the dagger to knock the container out of the maniacal penguin's flippers. Sarge was stunned by the action and Manfredi brought the handle of the dagger back, knocking him across the face. While Sarge was spun around, he drove the dagger into the penguin's back.

Sarge's cry of pain echoed around the antechamber. When it reached Manfredi's ears, he welcomed it. It was the cry he had longed to hear for so long. It satisfied him as he wrenched the dagger back. Before Sarge could even drop to the ground, Manfredi drove the crooked blade forward again and again. The robotic-penguin couldn't help but smile as Sarge grunted in pain. Manfredi watched the bird fall over in front of him, landing on the cold tile.

The cyborg let him fall onto the tile. The bird fell, holding his gut and cringing in pain. He rolled when he hit the ground, looking up into Manfredi's face. Immediately, a pool of blood began to form underneath him. Manfredi didn't grimace, though. He merely looked down at the bird solemnly. He finally done it. Finally reached his target. Finally stabbed him.

Manfredi let the blood-soaked dagger drop to the ground beside him. It didn't mean anything to him any more. It was nothing more than hardened wood and steel at this point. Crooked and useless for anything that it had originally been created for. Manfredi closed his eyes, turning away from Sarge.

Was it finally done? Manfredi couldn't believe it; the feeling was unreal. He felt his flippers relax as an icy cold wind ruffled his feathers. Sarge was dead, and he had no reason to regret it.

"Manfredi, the Sun!" Marlene called suddenly. He glanced down and saw Sarge pulling himself closer to the closed canister, his blood forming a thick trail behind him. His face was screwed up and determined as he took it into his flippers once again.

"If I'm g-going to d-die here," he choked, blood filling his mouth, "then all of you are too."

Instantly, the bird twisted open the container, pulling the ends apart. He tossed both sides of hit to his sides and watched as the glowing orb floated above him for a few moments.

Marlene and Skipper's gasps could be heard as massive waves of energy began to come off of it, rocking the room. They weren't anything like the concentrated ball that he had sent towards Private, but they were enough force to make Manfredi shield his face. He watched as the glowing orb began to glow brighter and brighter, rising slightly above Sarge.

Sarge was laughing in the meantime. He laughed until it sounded like nothing more than a hoarse gargling noise. The penguin's eyes shut for the last time as he stared up at the item he had fought so hard, and so wrongly, to obtain.

Manfredi was struggling to maintain his balance as the waves of energy coming off of the orb began to increase in intensity. He looked at Skipper who looked confused at him, wondering what it was that was happening. Manfredi wasn't sure, either, but he knew that he had to gather the ends of the canister and close to Sun, otherwise all of them were going to wind up like Private.

He knew that it wasn't that easy, though. He had no idea if the Sun could even be closed again. He had to find a way, though, for all of their sakes.

"Gather the others and get out of here," he shouted to Skipper as the hissing noise of the Sun grew deafening.

"We're not leaving without you," the bird shouted back as he struggled to his feet. "C'mon, lets get out of here together."

"No!" Manfredi commanded. "I need to close the sun again! Get out of here!"

Skipper nodded as though he already knew what had to be done. Wasting no more time, he went over to Kowalski and began dragging him by his flippers, trying to get him away from the open Sun. Manfredi knew it was going to take far too long. There were far too many disabled animals for them to get out of there in any amount of time.

Thinking quickly, he launched himself onto the Sun. Pulling it down into his body, he tried to shield the surrounding area from the powerful waves it was emitting. Instead, Manfredi felt them pulse through his body, rocking his internal organs. It sent massive waves of pain through his body as he felt his flimsy bones shatter from the massive force the Sun was emitting. It accomplished what he had hoped to do, though, and the energy waves were no longer reaching the rest of the room.

Looking up, he saw a strange light floating through the room. He was able to make out a stout man in a business suit running around the platform. In his arms he gently held Julien and Marlene, and was picking up Private. To Manfredi's other side, he saw the redheaded woman holding Kowalski, Rico, and Skipper. He saw Gier find the strength to pull himself to his feet as he began limping away from the platform, waving his flippers towards the two humans that were racing away. They didn't notice, though, and exited the antechamber as quickly as they could.

When Manfredi saw they were safely out of the chamber, he rolled back over. He felt a warmness grow from inside him. It mixed with the immense pain he was feeling, and he knew that his internal organs had been shaken to hell by the Sun's pounding. Still, he found the strength to move onward.

His organic flipper didn't respond when he tried to move it, and neither did his legs. They were either two broken to be moved or he had lost control of them from the vibrations that had destroyed his innards. His mechanical flipper still did, though. Even though he heard servos seizing and bolts breaking off, he was still able to pull himself forward.

He grabbed the half of the canister that was nearby him, using it to help pull himself towards the other side of Sarge's dead body where the second half laid. The Sun was still pounding on his back, though, and he found it hard to see as his vision was jarred each time a wave of energy transferred from him and into the ground.

It made it difficult to continue. Manfredi felt his flipper give out and laid on the ground for a moment, his breaths coming choppily. Eventually he found it impossible to breath and stopped trying, hoping that his internal oxygen supply was still functional. Even so, he did not try to push on as the Sun's waves grew more omnipresent, it rising into the air.

Manfredi suddenly felt a flipper pull his beak up. He glanced above himself to see a small penguin looking down at him. His eyes were glistening with innocence, fire, and intelligence. His feathers, mostly still gray and soft, swayed with each passing wave of the Sun. Johnson. He smiled down at Manfredi, nodding in an approving matter.

Manfredi found strength in his organic flipper again and used it to pull himself forward further. Johnson faded into smoke above him as the waves from the Sun began to grow hot on his back. He felt the warmth burn into his skin, but pressed on.

He came onto Sarge's dead body. He used all of his strength to push it out of the way. Behind him stood a female penguin. She looked down at a baby, green-eyed penguin that ran up and snuggled itself into her feathers. Then, she smiled up at Manfredi. Her green eyes were glowing with a radiance Manfredi had never seen before. Sarah. Manfredi was able to push himself onto his flippers and found the strength to stand once again as her figure faded into smoke.

The Sun threatened to knock Manfredi over again, but he pushed forward. He came upon the other half of the canister and took it up in his flipper. He put the ends together and noted how they connected. Separating them again he pushed forward to the Sun. It was rising high now, and would be out of his reach soon if he didn't hurry.

The waves became unbearably hot, though, and he felt his feathers become scorched on his face and chest. Nonetheless, he pushed forward. He felt his legs grow weak, but he steadied himself as he felt a flipper push into his back.

Behind him a small was pushing him forward, a determined look on his face. His crystal blue eyes showed determination as Manfredi glanced back at him. Private. The bird smiled before disappearing into a wisp of smoke. Manfredi waddled forward, not noticing the pain that ran through his flippers and feet as he did so.

He approached the Sun, looking into its intense brightness. He cupped his robotic flipper around the floating energy ball, bringing it closer to himself it was very hot and he smelled the metal on his flipper begin to warp and melt and he pulled it closer.

He held the world's greatest power in his flippers, floating in mid air right in front of his face. This is what his loved ones had died over. It was what they had fought so hard to protect. This tiny little speck of pure energy. It was what drove a penguin to murder. Earth's life energy.

He saw a figure walk out of the whiteness that surrounded him. It was the pigeon that Manfredi had killed all those months ago in the ally. He smiled slightly before closing his wings around the robotic-penguin's flippers. Manfredi took one end of the canister, and with the pigeon's help, closed them around the Sun. Manfredi glanced up to the pigeon, who only nodded.

As soon as the container was closed once again, Manfredi felt the heat disappear and the waves that rolled through him disappeared. The pigeon vanished in a puff of smoke and the room fell dark. After a moment the Sun stabilized and began glowing red-orange again. Manfredi was left in silence, holding the canister.

He wasn't done yet, though.

He limped forward, feeling his body grow very weak. He was only a few feet from the pedestal, where the Sun needed to be replaced. He felt his legs give out and fell onto his face, the Sun rolling a few feet in front of him.

Using his melted, robotic flipper again, he dragged himself forward and retook the Sun. He heaved himself up, using the pedestal to support his wait. Then, with the last of his strength he slammed the container down into its slot. As Manfredi fell to the ground he saw it levitate into the air a little bit above its resting place. After a short while it began to glow white-hot again, and the torches in the hallway came on again.

He had done it. He had ended the life of Caspian Fishslader, his target, his vile enemy. He had closed the Sun and returned it to the pedestal. Manfredi felt a slight smile pull at the edges of his beak as he thought about these things. It was finally done. Two years of hunting, and he had finally finished what he had started.

Sarah would be happy for him. She'd be happy to see him come home after such a victory, and hug him. They'd celebrate with a fish dinner as their child ran happily around the table. He'd promise never to leave them again. She'd like that.

Manfredi felt a tear form in his eye as he thought about her. He knew for sure that this was his end, though. Maybe where he was going, he'd be able to see her again. Last time he had died, he had been resurrected for a reason. This time, he had nothing left to continue living for. He was happy to let himself slide into eternal blackness.

The tear streaked down his cheek as he smiled widely. "I did it, Johnson," he spoke to himself. "We did it."

As he felt his eyelid grow heavy and darkness overcome him, he felt all of his pain, all of his grief and sorrow, leave his body. Death was like a gift to him, he thought, and then his mind grew blank.

Moments later, his red, mechanical eye began its slow flashing. Shortly thereafter, it went entirely dark.

* * *

**~Author's Note**: This chapter is a little late, sorry about that. document uploader was down last night it seems! Day 11, I made it! Hope you enjoyed reading a chapter every day! Going to slow down to a more reasonable speed now that I'm back in school.

Hopes this chapter was pretty epic and did Manfredi justice. I know many of you have been waiting for this chapter for months now. Don't worry, though, its not the last chapter of the book. There's a few more resolution chapters coming up!


	55. Repression

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 55 – Repression**

Skipper's Log. Sometime in... October, I think...

"_I don't know anymore, to be honest. The sun hasn't moved in so long that its been nearly impossible to keep track of the days. It has felt like its been about a week since we infiltrated the Penguin Base and I stole the Sun back. For all I know, though, several months could have passed._

_ "In a sense, Manfredi, Johnson and I succeeded in our mission to steal the Sun back from Sarge. I have it in my flippers now, and it feels warm. Sarge's base lays in ruins, and his army lays dead. Unfortunately, so do Manfredi and Johnson._

_ "That is where I failed. Manfredi and Johnson did not make it out of the base alive before it exploded. The moment I removed the Sun from where Sarge was holding it, the entire base went up in flames. Johnson decided to run back in for some reason, despite Manfredi and I shouting at him not to. Manfredi followed him back in. I didn't. I still remember now what he shouted to me before the entrance caved in._

_ "'No penguin left behind.'_

_ "Should I have ran in back after him? I had the Sun, but there was little chance anyone but us was concerned with it now that the base was collapsing. I can't tell if my decision was a good one or a bad one. I wish I had someone to talk to about it now. Someone who could tell me if I've made a terrible mistake or if I did the right thing. I wouldn't mind getting yelled at by Manfredi right now, actually._

_ "There's been nobody but my own thoughts to keep me company since I last saw him, though. Right before the entrance collapsed, and the whole damn building exploded. He had this look on his face, like he was disappointed that I wasn't following after Johnson. _

_ "It's... it's... hard... to picture him now._

_ "Johnson, too. I know he didn't really have anyone besides Manfredi and I that will miss him, but he was still young. I'm growing older. He should probably be sitting here on this raft, headed back to Antarctica, not me. He had so much more to live for than me. Fish and chips, I don't even have any family. After I return the Sun, I'll be as lost as I was before Sarge invited me to join the Penguin Army._

_ "Talking about Johnson makes me think about those other penguins from the army, too. I didn't see any of them escape before the building exploded. There is a chance that some of them got out before we even invaded, but I doubt that. They were so loyal, I doubt a single one of them decided to bail just because we were invading. _

_ "Three thousand penguins... all dead..._

_ "Was it my fault? Thinking about it makes my head spin a bit. I don't like it. Again, I wish I just had someone to talk to. Someone who could tell me what I did wrong. Slap me upside the head. That would set it straight. Or at least make it stop pounding._

_ "Can't tell if that pain is from my own thoughts or the Sun itself, though. I've felt abnormally tired over the last week, and I'm confident it's screwing with me. It's like it wants me to go to sleep and never wake up. The idea seems tempting..._

_ "No. I can't. Manfredi and Johnson's lives would be for nothing if I don't return it. _

_ "From what I've heard on the human's radio the world is falling apart. The human nations are threatening to invade each other to get slices of the only fertile land left. The rest of the world is either experiencing an ice age or turning into a desert. I hope I can get this thing back and get the Earth rotating again before a world war breaks out._

_ "That's if it even works that way..._

_ "I can't quite understand why the humans just can't work together right now. Penguins would huddle together on the small bits of land to survive, and help one another. Why are they going to start a war?  
__ "Not my concern, anyway. I'm just a penguin. A penguin that holds the key to maintaining the peace. Is this feeling what Sarge wanted by stealing this thing in the first place?_

_ "I guess Sarge's death is one of the only benefits of the events that transpired. He's gone for good, now. I saw an explosion collapse a tunnel over the top of him. No way he could have survived that. At least I hope he didn't._

_ "If he did... I'll probably be seeing him again real soon..._

_ "That's why I can't forget. I can't forget Manfredi and Johnson. They sacraficed their lives to stop a mad penguin and save the world. I ran away. I need to share their story, tell about the Sun, get some more penguins prepared incase Sarge or anyone else finds out about its power again. _

_ "That's what Manfredi and Johnson would want. If the fight wasn't over, they'd keep fighting._

_ "Hell... Manfredi battled through the death of his family. I don't think I could do that._

_ "For Now, I don't look forward to going back to Antarctica. It's going to be quiet there. All I've had since the explosion at the penguin base is quiet. _

_ "Quiet is the last thing I want."_

**SKIPPER CLICKED THE TAPE RECORDEDER OFF**.

That had been his last entry. He had listened to them all the way through, wondering if he had recorded anything that would help him decide where to go from here. Unfortunately, they hadn't. He was still just as lost, confused, and tired.

He stood on top of the fake ice floe, the pool gently lapping its sides. He hadn't quite gotten used to the feeling of the concrete under his feet yet. It wasn't anything like snow or ice. Then again, there were no cold wins here. Only a hot summer sun beating down on his flat head.

He looked around at the people staring at him, pointing out the tape recorder that he had in his flippers. Hadn't they ever seen a device like this before in their lives? He tried to ignore them the best he could. The people had saved him from starvation, yes, but that didn't mean he was going to entertain them.

He had too many important things to do. He needed to get set on what he had promised himself he would do. He wasn't going to forget about Manfredi and Johnson... or at least, he was going to try.

The idea scared him, though. He never quite found peace in their deaths like he was hoping he would be able to. He didn't like how it scared him. He thought about how it would be far easier to just bury their memories and try to forget about everything that had happened entirely.

Not thinking, he whipped the tape recorder into the water. He watched it sparkle and sizzle before falling silent forever. Never would anyone hear his thoughts. Never would he be able to share Manfredi and Johnson's story.

He immediately was filled with regret. What had he done?

He turned away from the ruined electronic device that was quickly sinking to the bottom of the pool. He rubbed his eyes with his flippers, trying to clear his mind. His vision cleared just in time to see a large crate get set down near him. A burly red-haired woman pried it open with a crowbar and three stunned, confused-looking penguins walked out.

Skipper crossed his flippers and looked at them. One was tall and professional looking. One had a mohawk, scar on his beak, and his tounge was lolling out of the side of his mouth. The last looked shily away from him. Skipper could see a little of what remained of his down feathers.

They looked at him in a confused way as the woman took the crate away. Had they ever seen a penguin cross his flippers before?  
They continued in silence for a short while. Skipper knew these three were going to be his new team. He was going to show them everything. All of the hand-to-hand he had learned from the Penguin Army, all of the survival techniques, all of the skills they would need. They would be the ones who were going to help him defend the world if the Sun ever rose again.

And Skipper knew it would.

They would also need to know everything as well. Skipper thought best choice of action would be to not tell them about the sun just yet. They needed to know how to defend themselves first, and defend that information. Yes. He'd show them how to fight first, and then tell them about Manfredi and Johnson.

That would still uphold his promise, right?

"Alright, boys," he spoke suddenly, making the three penguins jump in surpise, "welcome to bootcamp. My name is Skipper and you will address me only as sir. Are we clear?"  
The three penguins shifted in their places awkwardly.

* * *

**~Author's Note**: Short, I know. The Skipper's Logs throughout the book had to surmount to something, though! If you couldn't tell, this happens far in the past, before the events of the book. Skipper was listening to his own logs the entire time.

We'll be getting back to the present situation next chapter!


	56. Rest

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Chapter 56 – Rest**

**ALICE BARGED THROUGH THE DOOR TO THE CAPTAIN'S CABIN.**

In her arms she clutched three of the penguins. They were wrapped in her jacket, and as a result she was freezing. She had to stabilize them somehow, though. Their injuries looked nasty and they had been fading in an out of consciousness over the day it had taken them to run back to Issac's boat.

As she set the penguins down gently, using the jacket as a make-shift cushion, Andrew Green entered the room. He, too, had used his jacket to wrap the animals he was holding in warmth. He set down the lemur, otter, and one more penguin. It was the penguin Alice had seen take an energy ball to the face, just like Issac had, but had not been vaporized.

Alice wasted no time. Her animals were badly wounded and she needed to help them. She dug around the cabin and found a surprisingly high number of medical supplies for the raft. Issac had been crazy, yes, but Alice assumed he at least knew to keep ample supplies on board in case of injury. She found some sterile gauze pads, some hydrogen peroxide, a needle and thread for sewing up gashes, bandages, and some other useful things. Plenty to clean up the wounds and prevent infection.

She started with the otter, as she was the only one with an openly bleeding cut. Her arm had been cut deeply by the crazy penguin in the antechamber, and though Alice had tried to apply as much gentle pressure as she could to get it to stop, it was still trickling. The otter woozily looked up at her, disorientated from loss of blood.

Using a pair of scissors, she trimmed the otter's blood-soaked fur away from the cut. Then she cleansed it with the hydrogen peroxide, and finally began to sew the cut closed. She was suddenly glad that she had been forced to go through that week-long animal healthcare course to become a zookeeper, as the knowledge was coming in handy now.

"Don't worry, only a few more stitches," she told the otter as it gasped in pain. Alice knew she had to get the wound closed, though, or the otter would bleed out in a few more hours.

When the wound was finally closed, Alice sterilized the area one last time before wrapping it tightly in gauze and bandages. The otter looked relieved that the procedure was over. Alice felt a smile pull at her lips as the otter toyed with the bandages gently. The swelling in her left eye had gone down a bit, but it was still mostly closed. It gave the otter a bit of a silly, cute look as she stared up at the redhead.

Alice didn't want to waste any more time admiring her, though. She turned to the ring tailed lemur, ready to work on his mangled snout. To her surprise, she saw Andrew already preparing to realign his dislocated jaw. He looked to her for approval. She nodded, then both her and the otter flinched when she heard a sickening pop as the lemur's jaw was pushed back into line. Thankfully the lemur was still unconscious and didn't seem to feel it.

"How did you know to do that?" she asked him.

"I've had to realign a few broken bones in people before in my time. Lemurs aren't that different, right?" he answered.

"Maybe so," Alice agreed, "Thank you."

Mr. Green seemed to freeze for a moment, staring to Alice's eyes. It was like he was confused; enveloped by those two words alone.

"For what?" he said.

"You know... for everything," Alice spilled. "I never would have even gotten the slightest hint about what was really going on with my penguins if it wasn't for you. Then I never would have been able to follow them to Antarctica, which I couldn't have done with your help anyway."

Andrew smiled. "You know I've grown as attached to these animals as you have over the last few months. I wouldn't have let them get hurt."

Alice walked over to the tallest penguin, looking at a nasty-looking lump on his forehead. It looked up at her groggily as she wrapped its head in bandages. There wasn't much she could do about a cranial injury—she would merely have to hope wasn't suffering internal bleeding.

As she worked, she continued, "Yeah, that's true. But you dropped everything to come help me with this. Even though its over, you're even helping me patch them up."

The businessman straightened his ruined collar and cleared his throat. "We were right when we said something extraordinary was going on with your penguins. I should be thanking you for letting me be a part of it."

Alice felt herself blush slightly. The warmness of her cheeks was foreign to her as she said, "You're a pretty cool guy, Andy."

Andrew smiled again, as Alice noticed his cheeks also growing pink. She couldn't tell if it was from the cold air around them or her compliment, though. Actually, she was surprised he didn't snap at her for not calling him Mr. Green.

Instead he awkwardly said, "Thank you."

Alice redirected her attention at what she was doing. She was running her hands up and down the flat-headed penguin's body, feeling for any broken bones. The penguin scowled at her as she did, but she knew he would have to put up with it for now. There were a few soft spots where he had nasty bruises under his feathers, a few welts, and a wing that was no doubt broken. Other then that and the fact that many of his feathers were singed and ruined he didn't seem to be in too bad of shape.

Andrew gently took the penguin's wing, apologizing as it flinched in pain. Alice thought it was weird that he was apologizing to a bird. He never apologized to anything. But now, he had given that respect to a bird. The man had changed, she thought. Maybe she had changed as well.

Using some of the stiffer bandages, she wrapped his wing as much as she possibly could to make it as straight as possible. She had no idea how to properly support a broken penguin flipper, but it would have to do until they got back to the zoo and the veterinarian had a proper look at it.

The large bird that had a knack for swallowing things seemed to be in the best shape. She had seen him take a nasty hit from the tazor, but other then that he was unscathed. He had drifted in and out of consciousness a few times as they had hustled back to the boat, but now he sat up looking her directly in the eyes. He waved his flippers around widly, pointing towards the smallest penguin that was laying on the jackets.

Alice glanced towards him as Andrew began to clean Julien's snout. It had been such a mad dash away from the temple and back to the boat that she had entirely forgotten about him. He had taken that massive energy blast to protect the robot penguin that had killed the evil one. It was the same energy blast that had completely vaporized Issac Hull, and yet he was still here. Was he alive? Alice wasn't so sure.

Moving slowly, she took up his flipper. It fell limply to his side as she released it, and he didn't react. Not even a twitch. She began fearing the worst. There was no way that he could have survived that blast, could he?

She leaned over the tiny bird, moving her head closer. She was listening for any tiny noise that might signal he was alive. A peep, a coo, even the tiny sound of breathing. She gasped with surprise as the large penguin forced her head down to the penguins chest. She stopped just before hitting him and felt his feathers caress her cheek. Then, she heard it.

It was faint, but it was there. A very deep and slow thump that could have only been his heartbeat. Not believing her ears, she moved her hands and fingers all over his head and upper body, trying to find a sign of his pulse.

"He's alive!" She exclaimed when her fingers found the sweet spot. "I don't believe it!"

"How?" Andrew returned. He had finished cleaning and wrapping the lemur's long snout.

"I don't know, I don't know," Alice stuttered, stopping herself from jumping in the air excitedly.

"But Issac... and that energy," Andrew countered.

"He survived it, somehow. I don't care how, but he's alive!" Alice exclaimed, taking up Andrew's hands in her own.

She laughed at the surprised look on his face as she spun him around. Taking her laugh as a signal, Andrew spun her around too. She playfully shoved him, her head spinning a bit. She felt herself laughing until her throat went horse and it was only a wheeze. She fell backwards onto the metal floor, gasping for breath.

The small bird was alive! She couldn't believe it, and she didn't understand how, but he was Alive!

"_Huzzah!_" the large penguin cried, who was now standing near her. She hadn't even noticed him dancing with them, and was glad she hadn't stepped on him. She didn't even care that the penguin had managed a could-be word. She was just happy for the bird that was laying peacefully in the coat, his heart slowly beating.

"It's a miracle," she heard Andrew say as he sat down next to her.

"Yeah," she agreed. She sat up next to him, looking at the animals that were laying on the jackets. The flat-headed penguin had managed to sit up and was now sitting next to the small bird with the scar. The otter had propped herself up too, and was running her paw through the lemur's fur.

"What a crazy week this has been," Andrew said, looking up at Alice. He smiled, but the comment was still thought provoking.

"Yeah," Alice agreed again.

They sat like that for a while. The large, scarred bird got bored of the silence and went over to his leader, babbling something out to him. The leader clicked something back, and the large bird looked happy. The leader did not seem so excited as he leaned against the wall next to the small, unconscious penguin. Then he left the cabin. A month ago Alice would have been concerned about a penguin walking freely around a boat. Now, she didn't have the slightest worry for him. She was just glad to see him walking.

The zookeeper looked upon the remaining animals. The otter was hugging her love closely, gently running her fingers up and down his bandaged snout. Alice thought it was adorable. She had seen Julien take not one, but two massive blows to the face in defense of the otter.

Honestly, she wasn't sure if he'd come out entirely okay. He must have some sort of brain damage after what had happened. Something like internal bleeding or a ruptured skull. However, Alice knew these injuries were fatal in humans within a few hours, so he must have been okay. Maybe his nose had taken the brunt of the damage for him.

The otter leaned down and gently kissed the end of the lemur's nose. She saw the lemur twitch slightly and knew that he had acknowledged it, even if he was entirely unconscious. Alice thought about the otter herself. She had also taken a beating, but she had certainly returned one to those enemy penguins. In the antechamber it had looked like she went completely mental, loosing all semblance of her formal self. Alice felt herself glad at the otter's strange quirk, though. It had quite possibly saved her and the penguin's lives.

Alice felt herself smile as she thought about what she'd do for the two mammals when they got back to the zoo. She'd have to find some way to move them into the same habitat as soon as possible. The guests would ask why an Asian otter and a Madagascan lemur were in the same exhibit, but she didn't have the heart to keep them apart.

Not that it mattered much, though. If she did keep them apart, she knew they'd find a way to sneak out of their own habitats and see each other whenever they wished. They had been doing that for two years, and Alice knew they weren't going to stop. She was completely okay with that.

Her eyes shifted to the two penguins. The leader seemed to have drifted off. He looked peaceful as he slouched over his teammate.

"Do you think he'll pull through?" Andrew asked, noticing Alice was looking at the same birds she was.

Alice tapped her chin. "No clue. He could be in a coma or just sleeping for all we know. We'll have to ask the doc when we get back to the zoo."

"I certainly hope he does," responded the stout man.

"Me too," affirmed Alice. The idea of loosing the small bird terrified her.

"What about that one?" Andrew said, gesturing to the tall penguin that was laying all alone on the end of the jacket.

Alice compared him briefly to the otter and the lemur, and the two penguins. He seemed to shiver slightly in his slumber. She got up and walked over to him, pulling an end of the jacket over his form. It wasn't until she got closer that she realized he wasn't shivering because he was cold.

Streaking down his face was a single tear.

Alice immediately felt her own eyes water up at the sight of it. The penguin pulled at her heart strings in a way she had never experienced. Only now did she realize that none of the other animals jumped to see if he was okay, comfort him, check in with him. The other penguins were only concerned about the smallest one, and the otter was only concerned for the lemur. Nobody had even mentioned him since they had battled the evil penguins in the chamber.

She leaned in close to him and whispered, "Don't worry, your little buddy is alive." She didn't expect it to do anything, but was surprised when the tall penguin's eyes snapped open and he looked at her. Could they understand what she was saying? She didn't doubt it in the slightest. Gently, she flattened a few of the ruffled feathers on his head in a consoling motion.

As the penguin closed his eyes again, she realized he was not just concerned for his teammate. Something bigger had gone on inside of the chamber, she was sure of it. That was why he had worked with the evil penguins to tie up the leader and the robotic one. She had no idea why, though, and there was little chance she would ever understand it. For now, she decided to be the penguin's only friend.

She smiled slightly as the tall bird grabbed the hem of her pant leg, pulling it to his face. He didn't want his teammates to see him cry. Alice understood, and wiped her own face. She hadn't cried in years, but she wasn't ashamed.

"I guess you were right after all," Andrew spoke again as he got up.

"About what?" Alice responded as the businessman sat down next to her again.

"About your penguins. From day one, you always said they were up to something. Something extraordinary," Andrew continued.

Alice chuckled a bit, "Yeah, I guess you're right, Andy. I did say they were up to something mischievous, though."

"Maybe less mischievous and more heroic than we originally thought."

"Yeah."

"What do you think that thing in the container was? That glowing orb that they were all fighting over?" Andrew asked.

"Not a clue. Not sure I want to find out, either. It seems like it is more powerful than anything we people have ever built," the redhead responded.

"'We people'," quoted Mr. Green. "Do you think the penguins fabricated that object, and not people?"

"It's possible, you know? We don't really know what kind of things penguins are capable of. Other animals, too, for that matter. There's a chance some ancient civilization could have built it, but what ancient civilization do you know had the technology to survive in Antarctica?"

Andrew merely looked up at Alice, thoughtfully. "I suppose you are right," he responded after a while. "It just seems like the temple was built around that thing, rather than the thing being placed in the temple after it was complete. You know what I mean?"  
"So you're saying it existed even far before even the penguins discovered it?"

"Precisely."

A moment of silence passed between the pair as Alice looked over the animals once again. The otter had drifted off into sleep now, too. She briefly wondered where the large penguin had went. "Do you think we were ever supposed to see it? I mean, like humans in general. Are we the first people who ever saw that thing?"

Andrew nodded. "Something like that wouldn't go unnoticed. It would be all over the news in a matter of days."

"Then we should probably keep it a secret," Alice stated.

Andrew opened his mouth as though he was about to argue, but closed it again as his face showed realization. "You're probably right. What the penguins buried probably should stay buried. Who are we to mess with that kind of power, anyway?"

"Yeah."

Alice watched the large, scarred penguin walked into the room again. As soon as he saw the sleeping animals, he emitted a low "_D'aww_," holding his flippers up to his face in an adorable fashion. Then he quickly regurgitated several large fish onto the floor of the captain's cabin. So that was why he had gone out.

"Fish?" Mr. Green exclaimed loudly, startling Alice. "Fish mean water. That means that we can start making our way out of here!"

Both Alice and the businessman jumped up and went to the window of the cabin. As they were expecting, the ice that had encased their boat upon their first arrival was now cracking and dispersing. It would be more than enough for them to get headed back to New York.

Alice stepped up to the wheel of the boat, turning the ignition. The engines roared to life and she pushed the throttle forward. She wondered briefly if they would have enough fuel to make it back to New York or if they would need to stop in some country to refuel along the way.

"Do you think Issac's going to miss his boat?" Andrew asked.

Alice had not actually thought much about the insane sailor. Out of all of them, he was the one who had lost his life. Even all of her animals had made it out okay. She felt a slight ping of regret as she thought about the sight of his clothes laying in a heap, right where he had last stood.

"We'll have to notify the correct parties when we get back," she said, solemnly. Even though, she looked at Andrew and smiled slightly. "We'll let them know he was as crazy in death as he was in life."

Surprisingly, Andrew chuckled at her dark joke.


	57. Forgiveness

**Speed of Darkness  
Chapter 57 – Forgiveness**

**THE AIR WAS COOL.**

It gently caressed Skipper's face as it blew gently by him. It was cool and comforting, nothing like the icy winds that had ruffled his feathers in Antarctica. It furthered his already relaxed state as he looked up at the full moon shining down on him. The stars that dotted the sky around it were so bright, unlike in New York.

He dangled his feet over the side of the boat, listening to the waves gently sloshing up against the side of the craft. He leaned gently against the metal guard rail. This was the most calm he had been in the last month. A nice, quiet night. A calm ocean before him and nothing to worry. The only thing Skipper thought could make it better was a cup of his favorite fish coffee.

The leader bird thought about New York as he sat on the edge of the boat. He thought about the Central Park Zoo, with all of its habitats and guests. He realized just how much he missed it. He remembered that time long ago when he had told Manfredi that he would get stuck up in a zoo and regretted it. In the zoo, the worries of the world seemed to be non-existent. Everything inside those brick walls was peaceful. Nothing trying to kill him. Skipper missed that, and couldn't wait to return.

They'd be home soon, though. The boat they were on now was far faster than the one they had hijacked to go to Antarctica in the first place. Skipper estimated no longer than a week before they set foot on those familiar shores once again. It was going to be a week of rest. He gently felt the makeshift cast that encased his broken wing. It was also going to be a week of healing.

Skipper yawned as he gently stretched his flippers over his head. It was late now, and Skipper had completely lost track of the time he had been sitting at the bow of the craft, looking towards the future that lay before him. All of the other animals had long since gone to sleep. He wasn't tired though. He couldn't stop thinking about what had happened in the antechamber. About Private, Manfredi, Issac, Sarge, Kowalski.

He had known that friendly blood would be spilled. He had told all of his team that the night they had left New York for Antarctica. Still, he found the events that had happened hard to accept. He knew that it wasn't his fault, but yet he wanted to take the blame for it all. Julien's possible brain damage, Kowalski's betrayal, Private's coma. Manfredi's death. He knew none of these things were his fault. Sarge had done it. He still felt connected, though.

He shook his head slightly, recalling that time he had felt responsible for Manfredi and Johnson's deaths after the penguin base had exploded. He was done blaming himself for events that had transpired around him. He didn't want to feel like a failure anymore. What had happened, happened. Even though his team had made sacrifices, he knew their actions had been from their own hearts.

Julien protecting Marlene, Rico attacking Thurgo, Alice freeing Skipper and Manfredi, and Private jumping in front of the energy blast to save Manfredi's life had all been examples of that. They had been fighting to defend themselves, prevent Sarge from gaining the power he desired, and save the world. Not just because Skipper had told—no, asked—them to, but because they knew it was the right thing. Everyone who was in the antechamber those few days ago had heart. Skipper felt a slight smile pull at the edges of his beak.

He had already blamed himself once for Manfredi's death. He wasn't about to do it again. He had seen it in the cyborgs eyes as he jumped on the Sun, allowing the rest of them to escape. He wanted to save them. Wanted to protect them, so they could escape safely. Skipper knew the robot was more than happy to sacrifice himself so they would. With Sarge dead, he'd have nothing left to live for.

Skipper knew that, and he wasn't going to blame himself. Not this time.

It was hard not to, though. Kowalski's betrayal, which had lead to Skipper being bound when the others needed his help to fight off Sarge and his henchmen, had a direct result of his actions. Kowalski would have never done those things if Skipper had just told him what was going on from the first place. The bird was insanely smart, and grew very confused, angry, and rash when he didn't know what to think. Kowalski had acted because Skipper failed to tell him what he needed to know.

The flat-headed penguin's smile turned into a frown as he looked onto the cold ocean. Perhaps all of the events that had lead up to this point could had been prevented if he didn't always try to hide his past from others.

Skipper heard a shuffling behind him. Whipping his head around, his eyes fell onto Kowalski. The bird was awkwardly looking at the ground, his flippers folded behind his back.

"Oh, sorry," Kowalski said when he noticed Skipper had seen him, "I didn't mean to spook you. May I err... join you? Sir?"

"Sure," Skipper said, gesturing to the spot next to him. He redirected his attention back out over to ocean as he heard the intellectual sit down. He didn't make eye contact though. For some reason, he just couldn't bring himself to look up at the tall penguin.

The two penguins sat in silence for a period of time. Skipper's mind was going crazy, trying to formulate a sentence to break the ice. Something to get the conversation flowing that wouldn't be too harsh or too stupid. It was like he was talking to a new acquaintance. Kowalski managed to come up with something first and broke the silence.

"So, Sarge is dead," he spoke simply.

"Yup," Skipper responded.

More silence. Skipper heard Kowalski shift uneasily in his place. The leader really wished he could come up with something to say right about now. Something that might help the tall penguin forgive him. Instead he was blown away by Kowalski's next sentence.

"I'm... I'm sorry, sir," the strategist stuttered.

Skipper snapped his head towards Kowalski, who flinched when their eyes made contact. Had he thought that Skipper was going to slap him?

"Sorry for what?" Skipper asked, tilting his head to the side in curiosity. He was trying to make himself look a bit less mean-spirited, and it seemed to have some affect on the bird next to him.

"For playing into Sarge's trap. He had me by the strings like a puppet the whole time. I didn't even listen to you when you tried to tell me, sir," Kowalski responded.

"You can drop the soldier act," Skipper mentioned, making Kowalski meet his gaze again. "Right now I'm not your superior. I'm your friend."

Kowalski nodded, saying, "Thank you"

"Don't worry about Sarge, though. He had me brainwashed at one point time, too."

"Oh?" Kowalski asked.

"Yeah," Skipper responded, turning his gaze back out onto the ocean.

He watched as the moonlight glinted off the gentle waves and back into his eyes. It was very calming. Tonight was a perfect night to tell Kowalski everything that Skipper should have told him ages ago. The things Kowalski had only wanted to know so he could help Skipper find peace in his ex-teammate's deaths and maybe move on to bigger and better things. Now was the time, he was sure of it.

"I think I owe you a story," he began. Kowalski perked up at this, listening intently.

Skipper proceeded to spill everything. Everything from the very beginning. The first day he had met Sarge. The evil penguin had come to him at a time when he was lost and without purpose. The penguin had fulfilled his want to mean something in the world by offering him a spot in the Penguin Army. Skipper knew he had accepted because he wanted to try to make a difference.

The leader continued to tell his strategist everything that had happened at his boot camp and at the penguin base. From building the bunker, to installing the secret passage, to getting dumped on fishing duty, to Manfredi's falling out. All of the reasons that he had followed the large bird into oblivion, all of the things Johnson had said. Everything came out of Skipper's mouth like water, water that Kowalski was drinking up like he was extremely thirsty.

Skipper told Kowalski about the first time he had shot another penguin. Then he told him about how they had failed to convince the Penguin Army to rebel, and how Manfredi had revealed to Sarge the information he needed to murder all of Manfredi's home town and family. The tall bird expressed horror as Skipper described the sight of the destroyed town, the smell of blood in the air.

"I had no idea," Kowalski commented. "It seems like Manfredi had a right to be insane. He was driven into madness by Sarge."

"Manfredi was wounded that day, yes," responded the leader who still hadn't taken his eyes off the horizon, "but it wasn't until he lost Johnson that he died completely."

Skipper told him about their quest to steal the Sun away from the penguin base. How he had wrenched the Sun from the collapsing structure before it catastrophically exploded, killing all of those inside. That included Manfredi and Johnson, or so he thought.

The leader moved forward in time to the boat they had used to pursue Sarge to rescue the tall bird that sat next to him now. How Manfredi had nearly sacrificed himself just to get the damn thing running. Then Skipper filled him in with what Manfredi had shown Skipper and the others. The story of Johnson and Edgar. It was enough for Kowalski to lower his brow, angry at himself.

"If only I would have known," he said. "I would have never trusted that backstabbing traitor."

"That's my fault," said Skipper. "I should have told you the reason I had been training you on the very first day we met. It was wrong of me to do that to you. And on top of that, leave you in the darkness to get attacked by my own enemies while I ran away, after my old friend."

Kowalski seemed stunned by these words, as he didn't respond for some time. Skipper heard him shift around awkwardly again. Then, Skipper realized something. The tall bird had come out here to apologize to Skipper, and had not been expecting an apology back. He had been beating himself up for what had happened!

"Do you remember that time we stole that shipping barge and went to Antarctica? I had meant to tell you about the Sun then. Show it to you, actually, but then I turned back. I used the snowstorm that stood between us and the temple as an excuse, and we went left. I don't know if it was because I was afraid or the memories were too painful."  
"I had thought there was more of a reason for us going to Antarctica," Kowalski responded, "it didn't seem like the operation was worth stealing a human shipping vessel."

"You shouldn't blame yourself for anything that happened, though," Skipper told him, "you only did what you thought was best."

"I wish I would have listened to you more, though. I was just trying to protect everyone. I didn't want anyone to get hurt," the intellectual responded.

"There's nothing wrong with that," answered the leader.

Silence again. Skipper decided to break it quickly by saying, "I'm more than sorry about not telling you what you should have known. I'm sorry for hurting you like I did."

Kowalski shifted awkwardly again. "You shouldn't be apologizing to me so much, I've got plenty to be sorry for as well."

"You only did what you did because of how I treated you," answered Skipper.

"Maybe, but remember when Sarge offered me a spot on his team? I wasn't going to try to run away from him as soon as we got out of the temple. I was going to help him. Over the two weeks I had been trapped on their boat with them, they had gained my trust. In addition to that, they had made me hate you, Skipper."

Skipper was surprised by the words. Sarge had targeted Kowalski in a perfect way. The evil penguin was a psychological genius. He had preyed on Kowalski's tiny kernel of animosity towards Skipper and had made it grow.

"I'm really sorry for slapping you," Kowalski confessed. "I... I kind of enjoyed it."

Skipper turned to Kowalski, a smile on his beak. He gently clapped the tall bird on the back. Kowalski smiled too.

"Don't get used to that feeling," said Skipper, "because if you ever slap me like that again, it'll be cleaning duty for a week."

"Are we still going to be soldiers?" Kowalski asked. "I mean, Sarge is dead and the Sun is safe again..."

"Of course," Skipper countered. "We don't know what could be out there. As far as I know, we're some of the only animals on the planet that know the Sun exists. If anyone else learned about it, and wanted to use it like Sarge had planned, then we'd be the only ones who could stop them."

Kowalski nodded. "You know what? That idea sounds great to me. I'm happy to continue following your orders, sir," he said, finishing his words with a salute.

Skipper returned the salute and then they both smiled. Then silence befell the pair again. Skipper looked over the horizon again, watching the waves gently roll over the surface of the ocean, thinking about the future.

Things were looking up. Manfredi, his once best friend and teammate, was dead, yes, but Skipper had found peace in his death. He knew it had been a sacrifice that Manfredi was willing to make. Sarge was also dead. No longer would Skipper have to worry about him returning from his shadowed past to stir up trouble again.

His past wasn't really that shadowed anymore, though. He had shared it with everyone. His team, Julien, and Marlene all knew. He was happy with that. He no longer felt like he needed to conceal everything from everyone, like his secrets were only his to guard. Kowalski's betrayal had shown him that.

Skipper's thoughts drifted to Private, laying peacefully in the bed of jackets. Skipper knew he was alive, and was thankful. He was still in a coma, though, and the leader was not sure when he was going to come out of it. Even so, Skipper knew they'd be able to bring Private back up to full health. Skipper figured by the time they got back to New York, he'd be up, talking, and back to normal.

His thoughts found their way to Alice. The woman she had hated only a month ago. Hated with all of his heart because she had installed those tracking chips in their foreheads. The tracking chips had lead them directly to Kowalski and Sarge, though, and Skipper now saw the zookeeper in a different light. Now he found her to be a great ally and friend. She had saved them from the unclosed Sun, showing bravery that Skipper could only admire. She had patched up all of their wounds and was now driving the boat sleeplessly, trying to get back to New York for all of them. Skipper wished he could thank her somehow, but had no idea how to communicate with her. He would have to give her a salute later, he thought, maybe she'd see the meaning behind that.

Skipper sat peacefully next to his best friend, lieutenant, and strategist. The air of conflict that had once existed between them was now gone, and Skipper was happy. Everything was going to be okay now that Sarge was gone and they were on their way back to New York. It was all going to be just fine.

Skipper glanced up at the moon as it disappeared behind some clouds. The light it emitted followed it, leaving only the dim stars to illuminate their way. The penguin's face was bathed in shadow, leaving only his crystal blue eyes visible, gleaming.

The speed of darkness was not fast enough to catch him tonight.


	58. Epilogue

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Epilogue**

The small bird found himself standing in the middle of a large, white room. It seemed to go on for miles around him, like he could walk for days in any direction and never see anything but pure white. Even though he felt like he was in a concrete room, as if there were walls right next to him. He rubbed his eyes as he tried to determine where he was.

The last thing he remembered was getting hit with the Sun's energy. The energy ball he was sure was going to end his life and vaporize him into nothingness. He had done it to protect Manfredi. He suddenly felt a wave of fear roll over his body as he wondered if he was dead.

He couldn't be dead now, though, could he? He ran his flippers over his body. Everything seemed to be in place. He pinched himself, and was relieved to feel the pain that resulted. His feathers seemed unscathed, his beak was untouched, ans his eyesight was never better. So where was he?

He began waddling in a random direction, looking for any sign of something other than whiteness. Maybe this was some sort of large operating room, where the veterinarian was about to perform surgery on him? Maybe he was a little loopy on the anesthetics he was sure the vet had given him in the first place? Nothing seemed to make sense except the fact that he could determine what way was up and what way was down.

The penguin waddled for a long time. His feelings of hopelessness grew as his speed increased. There must be something out here. Something that signaled where he should go or at least where he was. It felt so empty.

He saw a speck come into his vision suddenly. Relieved to to finally see something other than the pure whiteness, he moved towards it. It gained form as he grew closer to it.

He gasped when he recognized the body of a human being floating slightly above the ground, arms crossed across his chest, his legs tightly closed together. Was he alright, just floating there like that? What was supporting him? The small penguin wondered if there was even any gravity in this place as he picked up his pace to get closer.

When he got close enough to make out the details, he recognized the man. It was the crazy sailor that charged into the antechamber after those evil penguins. The one that had been swinging the ice pick madly. The one that had been vaporized by the Sun.

The small penguin stopped waddling, looking up curiously at the man floating before him. He looked like he was in a peaceful slumber, almost as if he was meditating or something. Just floating there, in the air. The penguin became enveloped by the strange sight, and jumped when a voice came from behind him.

"It's strange having some company here again," it said.

It was a deep voice, and seemed to be coming at the small bird from all directions at once. It boomed with power, but also held a sense of beauty. The penguin spun his head around, looking for its origin. He gasped and jumped back when he located it next to him.

Standing next to him was a penguin. It had not been there only a moment before, and the small bird was frightened. It looked like a normal penguin, maybe some type of emperor because it stood so tall. The small bird gasped as he realized it was radiating light. Even against the whiteness around him, the penguin could tell it was glowing.

"There is no need to be frightened," it said, looking down at the small bird.

The words instantly had a calming effect on the other penguin. It was like he suddenly felt like he had known this glowing penguin all of his life, even though he was positive he had never seen it before.

"Who are you?" he asked the glowing penguin.

"Who am I? Who are you?" it asked back.

"I'm Private."  
"I know who you are," it said.

"How? Why did you ask?" continued the small bird.

"Merely because you seemed confused."  
"Well, yeah, but that's because I don't know who you are, I think," the small bird said.

The glowing penguin paused for a moment, and then responded, "You should know who I am."

"You seem familiar, but I really don't know what's going on," returned the small bird, looking up to the mysterious penguin.

"Strange," commented the penguin.

"Am I dead?" the smaller penguin asked suddenly.

The glowing penguin looked down at him, not expressing anything. His face was a blank slate. "You seem to be breathing to me," he said.

The small bird slapped his head, growing frustrated. He devised a different strategy. "This place, what is it? And why is this man floating here?"

"This is the Sun," the penguin returned.

The smaller bird gasped. "What? Really?"

"Yes. This man floats here because he was absorbed by the Sun. It's nice to have a little company again after so long."

The smaller bird looked up to the man and felt a little uneasy. "Have I been absorbed into the Sun, too?"  
"No," the penguin answered, simply. "It doesn't absorb animals. Only human beings."

"But I must have been absorbed," the small penguin argued, "I'm here, and I got hit by the Sun..."

"I'm not really sure how you got here, to be honest. You're the first animal I've ever seen in here,"

"But you're a penguin," the small bird countered.

"I am not."

"Then what are you?"  
"I am the Sun," it responded. "You are imagining me to look like something you're most familiar with. Something that makes sense to you."

The small bird was blown away. Was he holding a conversation with Earth's life energy?  
"You could say that," it responded. The smaller bird looked bewildered at the statement, so it continued, "Your thoughts are shared by all in here."

"Do you at least know why I've been brought here? There must be a reason, if animals don't normally get absorbed," the small bird wondered.

"Perhaps," the glowing penguin responded, "or maybe there isn't. These things don't reveal themselves right away. There is one thing I'm sure of, however.

"What's that?" asked the small bird.

"Animals don't belong here. You have much still to do in the real world."

"What kind of stuff?" the small bird wondered.

"You will be aware of it when the time comes," the glowing penguin returned.

"That doesn't help me much," the small bird said back, a touch of anger creeping into his voice.

The glowing penguin's face was unmoving as the small bird next to him tensed up a bit. "Perhaps it is time for you to get back to the real world? Your friends are probably worried for you."

"Yeah," the small bird responded, glancing back up to the floating man. "What about him?"

"He'll stay in here for some time. As I said, the Sun only accepts human beings."

The small bird was suddenly glad he was a penguin and not a person, as the idea of being trapped here did not appeal to him. He suddenly cleared his mind of these thoughts as the penguin entity near him turned to him, realizing that he was sharing these things.

"I cannot say for sure why you were brought here," he said, his voice continuing to boom around the small penguin from all sides, "but you must realize that there is far more for you to do back in your own world."

"Yes," responded the other bird, "I do."

The glowing penguin smiled at the words. Suddenly, the small bird felt himself getting pulled away from the strange penguin entity and the floating man. He was flying backward at an insane rate, but he felt as though he could be standing still. It didn't disorientate him or make him cry out in surprise.

It wasn't until he woke up, laying on the floor of a boat, than he realized it may have all actually been a dream.

**THE END**


	59. Final Word

**The Speed of Darkness  
****Final Word**

And finally, it's complete! I can't believe that the novel is finally done. I hope you enjoyed the double update at the end. I was trying to hide the fact that the ending was so close as best as possible! I, too, hope they were as good as the chapters that came before them.

I'm going to have a more proper final word and analysis uploaded to my DeviantArt account within the next day or so, so search me up (Cudabear) if you'd like to read it. I will say this here, however. If you couldn't tell from the title change and the ending, that is.

There will be a sequel!

I'm not sure how much time I'll be able to devote to it, but it is going to be another full-sized novel. The first chapter should be up in a week or so, but after that I'm going to take some time to plan it out!

With that out of the way, let me get down to the real point of this bonus chapter—thanking the readers and reviewers! Without you guys I never would have finished this thing, and I'm very appreciative. I'll start with some personalized thank yous for my most loyal reviewers (in no particular order):

** TheSkySpritsTalentShow: **Thank you for being so kind and displaying such enthusiasm on each chapter I posted! It was such a pleasure to read your excited reviews. Even though they were short, they brought a smile to my face and helped me realize that this book actually isn't half-bad! Thank you again for being so loyal, and I hope you enjoyed the ending!

**GoTeamSkipper:** Always a pleasure to read your feedback after each chapter. One of the main things I looked forward to after posting each chapter was your loyal review! You always had the nicest things to say, and your really helped boost my confidence with this story. I remember you saying that on my daily chapter spree you weren't going to review _each_ chapter, but you still did! I really do appreciate it. Thank you!

**HipTurtle15:** Thanks for being such a loyal reader and reviewer. You never seemed to log in to submit reviews, though, so I could never reply to them! You made me smile with your comments, though, and I thank you for that. It made me happy to hear that you enjoyed the story! Thanks again for being such a loyal reader.

**Asmith137**: You discovered the story a bit late into its life if I'm not mistaken, but you still took the time to write me some very detailed reviews! After that point, you wrote me very nice feedback on each and every new chapter. It was always very pleasant to get feedback from you, and I was always looking forward to what you had to say about the newer chapters. Thank you again for being so loyal and reading the entire book. You rock!

**Pip4:** I'm pretty sure you're my most long-term reader. If I'm not mistaken, you first reviewed this story sometime in early 2010, and you've stuck with it ever since. I do thank you for that! You always had some of the nicest things to say about the story and your feedback was always made me smile. It warmed my heart to still be receiving reviews from you, years after I had begun this story. Thank you!

**PenguinsFan19:** You're one of my favorite long-term readers. I remember receiving reviews from you back when this story was just beginning. You always had kind things to say about it, and your feedback was always a real confidence booster for me. It made me smile to see your quick review after the climax of the story, for I knew that you had read the entire book! That really warms my heart, so again, thank you!

**Fishy716**: You wrote some of the nicest, longest, and most helpful reviews. I enjoyed getting your well detailed reviews of the route I had taken through the story. They were mostly directed at the plot line itself, and where it was weak. I really do appreciate that, as it helps me strengthen what I do in future endeavors. I haven't received a review from you in a little while, but I do hope that you've enjoyed the rest of the story!

**Sarahbelle Saunders**: You are the one I have to thank most for getting be back into writing to the point that I finished this story. I was teetering on whether or not I wanted to devote time to writing again when you started writing me very nice reviews. You really helped to renew my love for writing and I can't thank you enough! You haven't reviewed for a little while, so I hope that you're doing well and if you have continued reading the story, that you enjoyed it. Thank you again!

**ABSOLute Chimera**: No clue if you will get this thank you, but it is well placed. Way back when I was starting this story, you stuck with me as I slowly posted chapters. Thank you so much for kind reviews on each chapter I posted, it really helped get me going and develop the plot. Thank you!

**Minimewtwo**: I'm unsure if you will get this thank you either, but again, a it is a well placed one. Thank you for sticking with this story for so long when it was in its early stages. I hope that you've continued to read, and even if you haven't you will get this thank you. You always said some of the nicest things to me, so thank you again!

**HalfHuman123: **Another thank you that may not be heard, as you mostly reviewed around two years ago, but I do still appreciate it. Thank you so much for all of your interest in this story as it began. It was always helpful to receive kind feedback on the first few chapters, so thank you!

** Ggreen7295:** Thank you for all of your early interest in the story. I'm also not sure if you will get this thank you, but I certainly hope you do. Your reviews were always very kind and always made me extremely happy to read. Thank you!

**Gewlicious**: Last, but not least, I thank the first person to favorite the story! You had some of the first reviews on the story, and you always gave me kind feedback. I'm not sure how far you read into the story, but I hope that you at least get this thank you. You really helped me get going!

Next, a blanket of thanks for everyone I missed, including you readers who quietly read and didn't review. Your interest is more than enough for me, as I write in hopes that people will read what I write. I hope you've all enjoyed this crazy ride as much as I have.

Finally, a quick dedication. A shoutout to my girlfriend for supporting me through writing this and helping me choose some major plot directions. I love you with all of my heart, and I can't thank you enough for being one of my biggest fans 3.

As I close out this final note, I'm going to list some stats. For my final word, I just want to say that I hope you've all enjoyed reading and that you'll return to read the sequel. Thank you all again!

* * *

**The Sun Chronicles (Book 1): The Speed of Darkness:**

_Begin Date: _**9/20/2009 **

_Finish Date (unedited)_: **3/10/2012**

_Final word count_: **154,582 **(omitting author's notes; unedited)

_Final chapter count: _**56, Prologue, Epilogue**

_Average chapter length (words)_: **2,665**

_Total days to write: _**~912 (2 and ½ years)**

_Total time to write (hours): _**~160**

_Average words/day (total time): _**170**

_ Average words/day (last 3 months): _~**980**

_ Average days/chapter (total time): _**15.75**

_ Average days/chapter (last 3 months): _~**3.25**

_ Total Reviews (3/10/2012): _**168**

_ Average Reviews/Chapter: _**2.90**

_ Average Reviews/Day: _**0.20**

_Total Hits (3/10/2012):_**16,256**

_ Average Hits/Chapter: _**280**

_ Average Hits/Day: _**18**

_ Total Favorites (3/10/2012): _**48**

_Total Alerts (3/10/2012): _**25**


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